Krishan Gopal Soni was a consultant ophthalmic surgeon at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, King’s Lynn, Norfolk. His medical career started in Punjab, India, then took him to Kenya before he settled in the UK, where he specialised in ophthalmology and worked in London, Wolverhampton, Birmingham and Norfolk. Krishan was born in Bajwara, Punjab, India, the third youngest of nine children of Amar Chand Soni and Lakshmi Devi Soni née Bhandari. His was a farming family, but the uneasy political situation in India, particularly in Punjab during and after the Partition of 1947, resulted in all the siblings looking to other lines of work to secure their futures. For Krishan, this meant medicine, and he qualified from Punjab University in 1957. Working at Amritsar Hospital, he realised that ophthalmology was a good fit for him, mainly because there was no blood involved and he had realised he was a little squeamish! After marrying Krishna Kumari Maini in 1959, Krishan moved to Kenya, first working at the King George VI Hospital in Nairobi to register as a doctor, then as a medical officer in Kapsabet, Narok and Embu. He introduced many initiatives, including disease mapping and universal vaccination against polio, pertussis and tetanus. During this time he also travelled to the UK, completing his diploma in ophthalmology in just four months, motivated by a desire to get back to his wife and new-born son, Ashok. In 1965, the family moved to the UK permanently. The boat was delayed en route, so Krishan disembarked at Naples and flew to London to start his Royal College of Surgeons of England fellowship. His hard work – in terms of studying and observing at Moorfields Hospital – paid off, and he secured his primary fellowship in less than six months. He then relocated with his family to work at Wolverhampton Eye Infirmary, passing the second and final part of his FRCS on his first attempt only a year or so later. Krishan was quickly promoted, first to registrar and then senior registrar, rewarded for his knowledge and expertise, as well as the sympathy and understanding with which he treated all his patients. His wife Krishna had also developed an interest in eyecare and, after completing her orthoptics qualification, started work at Birmingham Eye Hospital. She was soon joined by Krishan, who took up a senior registrar role, and the family expanded with the arrival of a baby girl, Anita. In 1972 came the final professional move, this time to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in west Norfolk to take up a consultant role. Krishan steered the ophthalmology departments at King’s Lynn, Wisbech and Doddington into the 20th century by persuading the powers that be to purchase essential equipment such as slit lamps. He also furthered himself – and patients – in several ways, for example by introducing corneal graft surgery, setting up diabetic screening clinics, and identifying the unpopular Monday morning slot as one in which he could run an additional surgery session. At the same time, he was undertaking research into the impact of road traffic accidents on eyes; his paper was included in the evidence used to introduce laminated windscreens and compulsory wearing of seatbelts to the UK (‘Eye injuries in road traffic accidents’ *Injury* 1973 Aug;5[1]:41-6). In 1976, only a couple of years after the birth of his second daughter Asha, Krishan was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease. A decade after receiving this news, his renal function had deteriorated to the point that he needed to start active management, and he was concerned that the fistula in his arm – necessary for the weekly haemodialysis procedure he now required – could impair his surgical skills. A year later, he received a kidney transplant, which meant he was able to work for a few years longer. However, retirement soon followed, with Krishan first stepping down from his NHS consultant role, then from his private practice and work at local ophthalmic optician practices. Retirement saw Krishan and his wife move back to Birmingham. While his kidney held steady, Krishan’s health was something of a rollercoaster, and he experienced various problems with his heart, as well as being prone to nasty infections as a result of the immunosuppression medication he needed to take for his transplant; a three-week stay in intensive care with pneumonia and pleurisy being a particular low point. He was contented though, happily continuing to play golf for many years and, particularly as his mobility faltered, to watch sport on television, read and spend time with his family and friends. He died, peacefully, on 9 June 2022 just after his 88th birthday and 63rd wedding anniversary, and was survived by his wife Krishna, children Ashok, Anita and Asha, and a host of grandchildren.