Ogilvie Duthie, the eldest son of the director of education at Salford, was born on 19 September 1899, in Manchester. After education at Manchester Grammar School he enlisted in the Navy in 1916, at the age of 17, as a Sub-Lieutenant. Entering Manchester University after the war he qualified in 1921

William Stewart Duke-Elder was born on 22 April 1898 at Tealing, near Dundee, the son of a Scottish minister. Before proceeding to St Andrew's University as a foundation scholar in 1915 he had been a brilliant pupil at school and was invariably top of the class. He graduated MA in 1919 with first cl

Born at Edgbaston, Birmingham on 29 October 1845, the son of Brooke Smith. His father belonged to an old Unitarian family and the son was named after Joseph Priestley, the preacher and discoverer of oxygen, who was driven to the United States when the Birmingham mob burnt his house. Brooke Smith was

Gerard William Crock was professor of ophthalmology at the University of Melbourne, Australia. He was born in Perth in 1929 and was educated with his twin brother Henry (known as Harry) at St Louis Jesuit School in Perth. Both brothers went on to study dentistry at the University of Western Australi

Roy Dalgleish was a consultant surgeon at Manchester Royal Eye Hospital. He was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 1929 and studied medicine at the University of Witswatersrand, qualifying MB BCh in 1952. After junior posts in Johannesburg, he went to the UK for further postgraduate studies a

Michael John Gilkes was a consultant ophthalmologist at the Sussex Eye Hospital, Brighton. He was born in Montreal, Canada, on 31 August 1923, the only child of Hester Dene Aram Parker, a musician, pianist and singer. She later married Martin Heming Gilkes, an author and teacher, who had lost a leg

Andrew Elkington was a consultant ophthalmologist in Southampton and one of the founders of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists. He was born on 12 December 1935 in Newport, Shropshire, into a medical family; his ancestors had been doctors since the eighteenth century. His father, George Ernest Elk

Samir Kumar Biswas was born in Khatura, a village in the Nadir district of West Bengal on 1 July 1929 and was educated at the St Xavier's College and the Medical College, Calcutta. He was always a meritorious student and graduated in 1954 and passed DOMS of Calcutta University in 1956. He then went

Edgar Frederick (John) King was born in Midsomer Norton, near Bristol, on 3 December 1899. His father, Edgar James King was in commerce and his mother was Sarah Denning, nee Bird. He was educated at King Edward's School, Bath, and at Bristol University and Medical School. He served as a Second Lieut

Ivor Levy was a consultant ophthalmologist at the Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel. He was born in Manchester on 29 June 1941 and educated in Manchester, at Pembroke College, Oxford, and at the London Hospital. After junior appointments, he held a research fellowship at the Bascom Palmer Eye Inst

David Ivor Bowen was a consultant ophthalmologist in Harrogate, Yorkshire. He was born on 7 March 1937 and studied at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge. He went on to St Thomas’ Hospital for his clinical training. After junior posts, he travelled around the world as a ship’s doctor, before dec

Pat Bateman was a consultant ophthalmologist in Cambridgeshire. She was born in Bristol on 11 May 1943, the daughter of Sam Roylance, headmaster of Cottam Grammar School in Bristol, and Emily Grace, a consultant paediatrician. She received her medical education at St Bartholomew’s and, after qualify