Born 20 July 1876 at Gosberton, Lincs, the second son of Richard Jocelyn Swan (1849-1925), MRCS 1870 (see *Lancet*, 1925, 2, 1257), and his wife Ana Elizabeth, elder daughter of Robert Russell Harper, MRCS 1875, of Holbeach, Lincs. R J Swan was the second son of John W Swan, MRCS 1835, of Ballyragge

Born on 16 August 1876 and brought up in South Africa, he was educated at Westminster School and St Thomas's Hospital where he had an outstanding career as a student. After qualifying in 1900 with the Conjoint Diploma he served as assistant house surgeon and house surgeon. In 1902 he graduated MB BS

James Christie Anderson, third child and third son of James Alexander Anderson, a schoolmaster, and Jeanie (née Boswell), was born in Dundee on 4 December 1899. After early education at Butterburn School and Dundee High School he secured an entrance scholarship to St Andrew's University where he ori

Marek Damanski was born in Laka, East Poland on 22 May, 1897. He was the only son of a doctor of medicine and attended grammar school in Lwow before entering the University there. After graduating MD in 1923 he worked for two years in general surgery and then eight years in urology at the State Gene

Guy Harrison Baines was born on 16 September 1911 at the Vicarage, St Helens, Lancashire, where his father Albert Baines, a Cambridge graduate, was a clerk in Holy Orders and later archdeacon of Halifax. His mother Mabel (née Harrison) came from Liverpool. After early education at Mostyn House, Park

John Prince Hopewell, a consultant urological surgeon at the Royal Free Hospital, London, was a pioneer in the introduction of dialysis into the UK and the development of kidney transplantation. He was born on 1 December 1920, the fourth child and only son of Samuel Hopewell and Wilhelmina ('Daisy')

Humphrey Walter Gowland was born in 1918 in Dunedin, New Zealand, the second son of Percy Gowland, who later became the eminent Professor of Anatomy at Otago Medical School. He was educated at first in Dunedin and later at Waitaki College where he had a distinguished international athletic career. H

Born 23 February 1922 at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the only child of R O Slater, company director, and Emma Bell, his wife. He was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and at the Medical School of the University of Durham. He qualified in 1943 and was appointed house surgeon at the R

Charles Bernays Melville was born in Melbourne, Australia, on 29 April 1903. He was educated at Scotch College, Melbourne, where he was captain of school and athletics, and at the University of Melbourne where he was awarded a blue in athletics and in football. He obtained first class honours and an

Hugh Forrest, whose father was a draughtsman and whose mother, Annie Tough Hay was a secretary, was born in Greenock on 12 June 1929. His initial education was at Greenock High School, where he won a poster prize for National Savings; he then went on to medical school in Glasgow, graduating in 1955

George Harrison was born on 3 January 1920 in Leeds. His father, also George Harrison, was an engineer. He was educated at Cockburn High School in Leeds and Leeds University Medical School, where he was strongly influenced by Archie Derwood, won the anatomy prize and at first intended to be an anato

Colin Clement Ware was a consultant general and vascular surgeon to the Southend-on-Sea Hospital Group, Essex, from 1971 to 1992. He was born in Barking, East London, on 16 July 1932. His father, Albert Ware, was an electrical engineer, and his mother, Annie Jelley, had been employed in the Post Off