John Curt was a consultant general surgeon in Salford. He was born on 29 June 1932 in Dundee, Scotland, to parents Ethel Curt née Newstead and Jabez Reginald Curt. Both were retailers: Ethel in cosmetics and Reginald was a draper. John was an only child. He spent just a year at his first school, the High School of Dundee, before the family relocated to London with his father’s job just prior to the start of the Second World War. In London John attended both primary and secondary modern schools before Ethel pushed for him to be moved to grammar school at Spring Grove. John also attended the local church in London and was a choirboy there. He remained a Christian and church goer throughout his life, ending as an elder of Avenue Methodist Church, Sale. John and his parents returned to Dundee in 1946 having survived the Blitz and John continued his secondary education at the Harris Academy in the city. He had planned to apply to study marine biology at university, but a close friend who was applying for medicine had been sent two application forms; John filled one in and there his medical career began. He spent six happy years at the University of St Andrews, where he met his wife Margaret (née Cook); they married in 1959. John did his National Service with his beloved Royal Navy, working as a surgeon lieutenant in the naval hospital at Gosport. He remained in the Royal Naval Reserve until his retirement, reaching the rank of surgeon commander. He did annual postings to relieve surgeons in Belize, Gibraltar, Hong Kong and various other locations. He remained a keen naval historian throughout his life and was a member of the Nelson Society. After National Service, John and Margaret returned to Dundee with their new daughter Judith. John worked at Dundee Royal Infirmary and, in 1965, passed his exams and was awarded his fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. He gained his fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons of England two years later, in 1967. John took a research post in 1968 at the University of Florida, Gainesville and the whole family moved there for a year. It was an experience John and Margaret always listed as one of their happiest. John moved up the medical ranks in Dundee and, by the early 1970s, was looking for an opportunity to become a consultant. Unfortunately, there were no openings in or around Dundee so the family, now including sons Jonathan and Peter, moved south to Manchester, where they settled in the suburb of Sale. John was a consultant at Salford Royal and Hope hospitals, where he remained happily until he took early retirement at 62 in 1994. John blamed the frustrations of the administration that had taken over hospitals for his decision to finish early. A picture of John closing the ward doors of the old Salford Royal was used in an exhibition commemorating the hospital when it was closed in 1993. He was awarded a Reserve Decoration in 1977, a bar in 1987, and, in June 1990, an OBE (military). He was Deputy Lieutenant of Greater Manchester from 1997 to 2007. John was a keen sportsman through his earlier years; he played rugby and football and was an excellent javelin thrower. But his main sporting love was cricket, which he played into his mid forties which, as a fast bowler, was no mean feat. John was a loyal supporter of Chelsea Football Club, Lancashire County Cricket Club and any sports team representing Scotland. John’s daughter Judith sadly passed away after illness in 2006 aged just 46. Whilst this was a very hard time for John and Margaret, they made the very most of their lives in retirement and loved to travel in Europe, particularly Italy, which they visited several times. In 2016 John and Margaret moved into an apartment but continued to lead an active life and both were skilled bridge players. They finally moved into a local care home, where they were well looked after and visited regularly by both sons and other family and friends. Margaret passed away in December 2023 and John never really got over the loss of his lifelong companion. In January John fell ill and insisted on being taken to the Salford Royal Hospital (formerly Hope Hospital). He passed away peacefully in his sleep on 16 January 2024, in the same hospital he had served so generously for 21 years. He was 91. John never did any private work in his career. He spent time in his last couple of years producing an autobiography with the assistance of a writer, entitled *Life has been good to me*, which wonderfully sums up his brilliantly optimistic look at life.