Mike Briggs was a consultant neurosurgeon at the Radcliffe Infirmary in Oxford. He grew up in Norfolk and won a scholarship to Norwich School. Because of wartime damage to the school, they were unable to teach science subjects, so Mike had a classical schooling, but it never seemed to put him off. A

Melvin Calverly Jennings ('Mel') was a urologist and general surgeon at East Surrey Hospital. He was born on 21 June 1939, into a surgical family. His father, Calverly Jennings, was a fellow of the college and a GP surgeon who worked at Epsom Cottage Hospital before the advent of the NHS. His mother

Roger Hughes Johnson was a consultant general surgeon at Whiston and St Helens hospitals, Merseyside. He was born in Southend-on-Sea on 24 July 1939. His father, William Joseph ('Bill') Johnson, was a firefighter and his mother, Irene Johnson (neé Hughes), taught home economics. His grandfather was

John Harrington Pusey was born on 19 January 1940 and was educated at Chesham Boy's Preparatory School, Bucks, and at Wycliffe College, Stone-house, Gloucestershire. For his medical education he came to St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College where he qualified with the Conjoint Diploma and the MB