Doherty, always called "George" though his real names were William David, was born on 17 July 1893 of Irish parents and educated at Dulwich College and King's College, Cambridge. He volunteered for active service when war broke out in August 1914, and served in France with the Royal Army Service Corps, attaining the rank of Captain, till he was recalled in 1917 to complete his medical training at Guy's Medical School. He qualified with the Conjoint Diploma in 1920, took his Cambridge medical degrees in 1921, and proceeded in 1923 to the Fellowship and in 1924 to the Cambridge Master of Surgery degree. At Guy's he served as house surgeon to Sir Alfred Fripp and was a demonstrator in anatomy; he was surgical registrar and tutor 1923-31, and assistant surgeon 1931-38. He succeeded A Ralph Thompson as genitourinary surgeon in 1936, and in 1948 followed T B Johnston in the very responsible post of Superintendent of the Hospital. He retired in 1958 and was elected a Governor of the Hospital, and of the Medical School from 1961. He was also a Governor of Alleyn's College of God's Gift at Dulwich. During the second world war Doherty operated on two days each week at Orpington Hospital to which his in-patients had been evacuated from Guy's, and spent one night a week at Guy's to deal with surgical emergencies during the heavy German air-raids on London. When he became Superintendent, after the war, he restricted his clinical work entirely within the walls of Guy's, where he was also deeply involved in the successful but prolonged restoration of the hospital buildings after their severe damage by bombing. Doherty was an excellent teacher, and his wide knowledge of most fields of surgery made him an invaluable mentor to his assistants and nurses, beyond the bounds of urology. He was a genial, sympathetic friend to his colleagues, staff and patients. He had great physical and mental strength, balance and judgement. In his youth he was an outstanding athlete. At Cambridge he won a half-blue for water-polo and a blue for rugger; he played forward for his school and for Cambridge, and was Captain of Guy's XV for three years; he was capped seven times for Ireland in the rugby international matches, and was captain of the Irish XV in 1921. Doherty married in 1922 Annie Ruth Margaret Barker, who survived him with two sons and a daughter. He died on 31 March 1966 at Forge Cottage, Chipstead, Surrey, aged seventy-two.