Antony Andrew Jefferson was a consultant neurosurgeon in Sheffield. He was born in Manchester on 13 June 1922 into a family with a well-established medical tradition. His mother, Gertrude May Jefferson née Flumerfelt, was a medical practitioner/psychiatrist and his father, Sir Geoffrey Jefferson, was already a famous neurosurgeon when Antony began his studies. His paternal grandfather, Arthur John Jefferson, was a GP in Rochdale, and his uncle, John 'Jack' Jefferson, was a general surgeon, also in Rochdale. It is therefore not surprising that Antony chose a medical career. His early education began at the Dragon School in Oxford and subsequently at Rugby School. He began medical school in Manchester, but moved after winning a scholarship to Oriel College, Oxford. From Autumn 1942 to December 1943, after obtaining a wartime Rockefeller studentship, and despite his ship being torpedoed off St John's, Newfoundland en route, he reached Canada and was able to continue at McGill University. During that time he had the opportunity of meeting the famous Canadian neurosurgeon Wilder Penfield and, following an internship at Duke University Hospital, North Carolina, did a short stint in neurosurgery with Guy Odom. These encounters seem to have decided the course of his career and he returned to England to complete the requirements for his medical degree. His postgraduate training started as a house surgeon to George Grey Turner at Hammersmith Hospital. From August 1945 to September 1947, he served as a surgical lieutenant in the Navy and travelled to New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, the Philippines, Korea and finally Japan, where he saw the effects of the atomic attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. After leaving the forces, from September 1947 until June 1948 he worked as a demonstrator in anatomy with George Mitchell in the department of anatomy, Manchester University. Subsequently, he trained in surgery at Ancoats Hospital in Manchester from July 1948 until August 1950, working as a registrar to Peter George McEvedy, gaining his FRCS in 1950. Following this, he worked with Walter Schlapp as a research fellow in neurophysiology at Manchester University, doing experimental work on spinal cord and nerve conduction in cats. In September 1952, he began his neurosurgical training with Joe Pennybacker at the Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford, until March 1956, when he was appointed as an assistant consultant in neurosurgery to James Hardman in Sheffield, shortly becoming a full consultant. He remained in Sheffield for the rest of his neurosurgical career until his retirement at the end of 1986. As so often the way, he was a victim of 'famous father syndrome' and spent his early years in the shadow of his father's towering reputation, however, he soon established himself on the national and international scene in his own right as an open-minded, progressive, innovative surgeon, eager to push the boundaries of neurosurgery forward with the progress of science. In 1956, he was made Hunterian professor and delivered a lecture on pituitary tumours and Rathke's pouch cyst, and was subsequently invited to deliver the Cairns lecture in Adelaide, South Australia and the Pybus lecture in Newcastle, UK. Antony was a great believer in 'neurosurgery without state boundaries' and was a keen believer in international cooperation, actively promoting the European Association of Neurosurgical Societies, where he served as vice-president from 1985 to 1987 and lectured on many training courses. He was also English language section editor of *Acta Neurochirugica* from 1960 to 1971. He served on the neurosurgical specialty advisory committee, including a period as chairman. Locally he was very active in the management of the Royal Infirmary and later the Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Sheffield, serving as secretary and later as chairman of the medical staff committee. He continuously worked on expanding the department and introducing new methods of treatment and diagnostics. His main interest was the treatment of pituitary tumours and he made a major contribution to the development and popularising of the transnasal approach, including understanding fluid balance in that disorder. He promoted the coordinated, multidisciplinary approach to the management of pituitary disorders involving endocrinological, surgical and X-ray therapy input. He also worked on the development and improvement of the far lateral approach to cervical and thoracic disc surgery. He was very keen to develop non-invasive diagnostic methods and made a contribution to the use of ultrasound in hydrocephalus, as a diagnostic tool for measuring the width of the third ventricle and the displacement of the third ventricle in the space occupying lesions. Prior to CT scan, it was an extremely useful non-invasive diagnostic tool. Further, he supported the development of CT and was instrumental in bringing one of the first CT scans in the UK to Sheffield. His other clinical interest was the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia and the pathogenesis and treatment of aqueduct stenosis. He believed and promoted early and continuous rehabilitation of patients with head injuries, also involving 'rehabilitation' of the patient's family. He introduced to Sheffield coherent management of the after effects of serious head injuries, the significance of which had not hitherto been understood or addressed, and, with the help of the Rotarians, built an outpatient head injury rehabilitation centre. His approach to surgery was meticulous, delicate and anatomical, which was later enhanced using an operating microscope. Antony took great pleasure in postgraduate teaching and instilled in his trainees the importance of seeing the patient not just as a medical condition, but as a person. He had a methodical diagnostic and surgical approach. He not only pursued his own clinical and research interests, but generously encouraged and helped his younger consultant colleagues to reach their full potential, although he was also quite capable of withering sarcasm if any lesser mortal should think too much of themselves! During the time he was senior consultant, under his leadership the Sheffield neurosurgical department expanded, developed and was modernised, both in clinical methods of treatment and in research. He encouraged and helped to establish in Sheffield stereotactic radiosurgery (gamma knife) and the small animal experimental research laboratory. He had many publications, which he generously shared with his trainees. On 16 August 1947, he married Margaret Eirlys Hughes, who was also a doctor, specialising in child health. They had three daughters Ann Margaret, Jane Monica and Ruth Penelope Mary, all three of whom graduated in the humanities. After retirement in December 1986, Antony and Eirlys moved to Wales, to her birthplace, and lived there until her death in December 2004. There he was able to indulge his many interests, including cabinet making, antique furniture restoring and gardening on a grand scale. Together they created a beautiful garden up above the pretty town of Newport in Pembrokeshire. They had many friends and family members in the area and were active in the Council for the Protection of Rural Wales. He became a member of the National Trust and the Royal Horticultural Society, and had a passionate interest in rhododendrons, camellias and magnolias. Although he had many interests, he had a genuine empathy with others, which made him good company. He was a kind, generous and humorous man who made friends all around the world and from all walks of life. Antony died on 8 November 2017 at the age of 95. He was survived by his three daughters, eight grandchildren and six great grandchildren.