George Birbara was a general surgeon in Leeton, New South Wales. He was born in Sydney on 16 August 1928. His parents, Anis, a tailor, and Amanda (née Diab) had emigrated from Lebanon. George went to Sydney Boys’ High School and Sydney University. After house appointments, he went to England in 19

Feroz Shah was a consultant general surgeon in Pakistan. He was born in Peshawar in 1927 and studied medicine at King Edward’s Medical College, Lahore. He went to England to specialise in surgery, working as a house surgeon in Croydon and a registrar at the Lambeth Hospital while he studied for the

John Gowan Gray, known as ‘Ian’, was a consultant surgeon at the North Staffordshire Royal Infirmary, Stoke-on-Trent, and the Leek Memorial Hospital. He was born in Dalkeith, Midlothian, and qualified at Edinburgh, where he completed junior house posts. During the Korean War he served his National S

Joe Magri was a consultant urologist at Oldchurch Hospital, Romford. He was born in Valletta, Malta, on 2 March 1926, the son of Francesca and Tancred Magri. He was educated at the Jesuit College and Malta University, where he qualified in 1949. He then moved to England to specialise in surgery.

Dennis Bonham was head of the postgraduate school of obstetrics and gynaecology at the National Women’s Hospital, Auckland, New Zealand. He was born in London on 23 September 1924, the son of Alfred John Bonham, a chemist, and Dorothy Alice Bonham, a pharmacist. He was educated at King Edward VI Sch

David Bower was a consultant gynaecologist and obstetrician at St Stephen's Hospital, Chelsea, later amalgamated into Chelsea and Westminster Hospital. He was born on 1 July 1929 in northwest London, the eldest son of Bartlett St George Bower, a successful lawyer, and Vera Bower née Luson. He went t

Ivan Johnston was professor of surgery at Newcastle-upon-Tyne and made major contributions to endocrine surgery. He was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on 4 October 1929, the son of David Johnston, a company secretary, and Mary née Clarke, and was educated at the Royal Belfast Academical Institut