Tim Bass was a consultant orthodontist in Exeter. He was born in Chigwell, Essex, the eldest of four children and was educated at St Edward’s, Oxford, a boarding school. A career in dentistry was suggested by his father and Tim qualified from Guy’s in 1954. After National Service in the Royal Army Dental Corps at Colchester, he gained a senior house officer post at the Eastman. In 1959 he became a registrar in oral surgery at Stoke Mandeville but, deciding on a career in orthodontics, obtained his diploma in orthodontics while a registrar at the Royal Dental Hospital and took his FDSRCS a year later. After a linked senior registrar post with John Hooper at Bournemouth, Tim became a lecturer in orthodontics at the Royal. An inspiring teacher, he was soon head-hunted for a senior lecturer post at the London Hospital dental school. From here he moved back to Guy’s in 1968, which on refection he felt was a mistake for he found he was unable to introduce the new teaching methods he had seen employed at the London. (It was unfortunate that shortly before he took up his appointment a review of the dental curriculum there had endorsed the continued use of the ‘block system’, which meant that students only had three months in the department of orthodontics and children’s dentistry.) In 1970 Tim applied successfully for the vacant consultant senior lecturer appointment at Bristol. Here he was able to introduce a longitudinal curriculum for the school in which students had one session a week in the orthodontic department throughout the three years of the clinical course and so were able to treat their own orthodontics cases and present these as part of their final examination. Now married with two daughters and always keen on dinghy sailing – he built his first boat in 1953 and was later invited to consider joining the UK Olympic solo team – in 1974 he applied successfully for the vacant regional consultant post at Exeter, which then included sessions at Axminster, Barnstaple and Torbay. A strong supporter of the British Dental Association and a past secretary of the local Exeter section, Tim was made president of the western counties branch in 1992. Retiring in 1994, his several memorable retirement parties reflected the esteem in which all held their genial and hardworking colleague. In retirement Tim completed a master’s degree in maritime history at Exeter University, became a member of Salcombe Harbour board, commodore of the local yacht club and later chairman of Salcombe Maritime Museum.