Mike Solan was born in Eltham, London, on 31 January 1932. His father, Michael, was a Bank of England official and his mother was Doris Winifred Gladys Rogers, a Librarian. He was educated at Douai Abbey School, Berkshire, and at Woolwich Polytechnic and he attended St Thomas's Hospital Medical Scho

Colin Skelton was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, on 31 March 1935 and educated at Christchurch West High School and Otago Medical School. After house appointments at Christchurch Hospital and Grey Hospital, Greymouth, he became surgical registrar at Christchurch Hospital and then came to England

Ralph Ronald Kendrick was born on 3 April 1915 in Camberwell, London, the only son of Samuel and Eleanor Kendrick. He was educated at Dulwich College and received his medical education at King's College Hospital, London, where, following graduation, he became house surgeon to Sir Cecil Wakeley. He t

Sol Cohen was born in 1904 in Cape Town where he gained his early education. He proceeded to the University of Cape Town, graduating BA (Honours) in 1923 and MA in 1925. He then entered Guy's Hospital Medical School for his clinical studies where his ability and innovative approach attracted the att

Douglas George Arnott Eadie was a consultant surgeon at the London Hospital. He was born on 16 June 1931, the son of Herbert Arnott Eadie, a general practitioner in Leeds, and Hannah Sophia née Wingate. His father died when Douglas was a year old and he was brought up by his step-father, Sir Raymond

Michael Reilly was born in Sheringham, Norfolk, on 30 August 1913, several weeks post-mature. This procrastination was to be a feature of his life. There was a suggestion that he should be christened 'Fabius', after the great Roman general Fabius Maximus Cunctator, but he was saddled with the family

Alban Barros D'Sa was a consultant general surgeon at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust. He was born in Nairobi, Kenya, into a Catholic family originally from Goa. Barros D'Sa later moved with his parents to Kisumu on Lake Victoria, where he went to school. He knew he wanted t

John Wedgwood Graham, the son of John Machefer Graham, a farmer and grazier, and of Ivy Maud (née Wedgwood), a descendant of Charles Darwin and Josiah Wedgwood, was born on 1 June 1921 at Narrabri, New South Wales. His grandfather, John Bass Graham, was a medical graduate from Dublin who practised i

Julius Karl Bremer was born in October 1922. He was educated at the high school in Graaf-Reinet and qualified MB ChB from the University of Kaapstad in 1935. During his years at the University he had a distinguished academic record and was elected to be chairman of the students' council. He won the

David Evans was a much admired general and vascular surgeon in Shrewsbury who became well known nationally in the latter part of his career for being in the forefront of hernia repair by minimal access surgery. He performed more than 2,600 such operations, giving a Hunterian lecture on his experienc

Edward John Immelman was a consultant vascular surgeon at Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town, South Africa. He was educated at Rondebosch Boys' High School and went on to study medicine at the University of Cape Town, where his academic ability was recognised with the award of the McCullogh and Aaron

Roland Jones was a consultant surgeon at Essex County and Black Notley Hospitals. He was born in Southport, Lancashire, on 16 May 1919. His father Norman was an architect, his mother was Esther née Cooper. He was educated at Oundle and St John's College, Cambridge, from which he went to St Thomas's