Matthew Crocker was a consultant neurosurgeon at the Atkinson Morley department of neurosurgery, St George’s Hospital, London. He was born on 6 August 1976 to Elizabeth Crocker née Norton and Simon Crocker. Simon was a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist in Norwich, where Matthew and his sister Alison grew up. Alison went on to become a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist. His headmaster noted a ‘capacity to enthuse and encourage others’, which, coupled with academic achievement, led to a scholarship to King Edward VI School in Norwich and a place at New College, Oxford in 1994. He obtained a BA in 1997 and qualified in 2000 with his BM BCh. He undertook his house jobs at the John Radcliffe in Oxford and moved to London for rotating senior house surgeon posts at St Mary’s Hospital, St Thomas’ and ultimately the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, which cemented his path toward a career in neurosurgery. He obtained a coveted South Thames national training number in neurosurgery in 2005 and completed six years of specialist training rotating between King’s College, Hurstwood Park and St George’s Hospital. During his training he undertook a two-year period of full-time research as the McKissock lecturer in neurosurgery at St George’s University of London investigating changes in cerebral blood flow in glioblastoma using xenon CT as well as the role of serum angiogenic profiles in prognosticating high grade glioma. He was a prolific author throughout his training, publishing over 50 articles on the breadth of neurosurgery, including vascular neurosurgery, spinal surgery, cranial trauma and the politics and governance of surgical practice, all reflecting his passion for neurosurgery and academia in general. He was awarded the Norman Dott gold medal for scoring first nationally in the FRCS neurosurgery examination in 2011. As a result, he was also awarded a Marjorie Newsome fellowship, which funded a visiting fellowship at the Barrow Neurological Institute at St Joseph’s Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona. Under the supervision of Robert Spetzler, a neurosurgeon of worldwide renown, he studied surgery for complex aneurysms and also witnessed surgical treatment of highly complex spinal disease, which fuelled an interest in this field for his consultant career. He was appointed to a consultant position at St George’s Hospital in 2012, initially as a general neurosurgeon, however in a short time he evolved into a highly skilled complex spinal surgeon. He prided himself on being the first to learn new surgical techniques, often adapting and improving the existing paradigm. He worked closely with his spinal orthopaedic colleagues and, as a result, had the skillset to undertake any spinal operation via any approach. In particular, he performed surgery for intramedullary spinal cord pathology, well known to be the most technically challenging cases for any neurosurgeon. As well as being an excellent trainer who was held in the highest regard by his trainees, he was passionate about equity of access for patients to the best treatment; he devised and led the regional complex spinal surgical network and spinal multidisciplinary team and was an active lead of his regional operational delivery network during the covid crisis. During his nine years of consultant practice, he achieved so much; he served his term as clinical lead for the department, co-authored a textbook (*Oxford case histories in neurosurgery* Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2013), reviewed articles for several journals, taught on spinal courses and developed a well-regarded medico-legal practice, being described as ‘lucid and impressive’ in his capacity as an expert witness. In 2003 he married Helen Matthews, a consultant gastroenterologist, and they had two daughters and a son. He was a pillar of his local church and community and shared his infectious passion for knowledge and mischief with everyone he met. He was a keen sportsman, firstly as an enthusiastic member of the Oxford University rowing squad. His made the final of the Diamond Challenge Sculls at Henley and won head of the Charles Regatta in Boston. His innate determination and stamina led him to excel in cycling, triathlon and ironman, finishing in the top quarter of the field at the amateur stage of the Tour de France. He took his life on 27 January 2022 with great sorrow for his family, many friends and the UK neurosurgical community, but leaves a legacy of determination, generosity and excellence.