Mendel Gordon was born on 31 May 1902. He went to school in Bournemouth before training at King's College, London and Charing Cross Medical School, where he qualified with the Conjoint Diploma in 1929 and was awarded the Governor's gold medal in medicine and surgery. After house surgeon appointments

Arthur Michael Wood, the second son of Arthur Henry Wood, CB, a civil servant in the Board of Education, and of Katherine Mary Altham Wood (née Cumberlege), was born at Guildford, Surrey, on 28 January, 1919. He was educated at Lambrook School, Berkshire, Ringwood School, Winchester College, the Éco

Robert Clark Campbell (known as 'Bob') was a consultant plastic surgeon at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge. He was born in Dundee on 31 January 1931, the only son of Archibald and Agnes Campbell. Following school in Dundee and then Southampton, he decided upon a career in medicine and he graduated

John Grocott was the surgeon in charge of the plastic department at North Staffordshire Royal Infirmary. He was born on 23 January 1910, the only son of William Harley Grocott, headmaster of the Church of England school at Fenton, Staffordshire, and Eleanor Jane Grocott née Shemilt. He had two siste

Flint received his medical education at University College Hospital and qualified MB BS in 1950. After house posts at University College Hospital and a lectureship in anatomy at University College he gained his Fellowship in 1957 and was surgical registrar at UCH and orthopaedic registrar at the Roy

Anthony D'Arcy Pelly qualified MB BS in Sydney in 1954. He passed the College Fellowship in 1957 and worked as senior registrar in the plastic surgery, burns and oral surgery centre at Queen Mary's Hospital, Roehampton, London. He became honorary plastic surgeon to the Balmain and District Hospital

Joseph Edwards studied medicine at King's College and King's College Hospital. After house appointments at King's he was a senior demonstrator in anatomy at the Middlesex Hospital before specialising in plastic surgery. He published extensively on the role of relaxin as an aetiological factor in dia

Ashall was born in Addis Ababa in 1954 and received his medical education at St Mary's Hospital, whence he qualified in 1978. Dr Geoffrey Irvine, the medical superintendent at Chogoria Hospital in Kenya, where Ashall spent three months in 1973, inspired Ashall to turn to surgery after qualification;

Percy Jayes, an internationally known and respected plastic surgeon, was born on 26 June 1915, the first son of Thomas Harris Jayes, a butcher and farmer. His mother, Jessie May, was a daughter of a master mariner. He had one younger brother. Educated at Quernmore School, Bromley, and Merchant Taylo

Denis Bodenham was a pioneer plastic surgeon who learnt his basic skills in RAF hospitals during the war, and went on to apply his expertise in peace time surgery, making important contributions to the pathology and the management of malignant melanoma. He was born in Bristol on 20 October 1915, the

Sorab Jal Mehta was born in 1929 and had his medical undergraduate education at the Grant Medical College, obtaining the MB BS degree from the University of Bombay in 1953. After holding junior appointments at home he came to England in 1955 and did his surgical training at the Birmingham Accident H

David Francis Cort was born on 19 March 1935 in Hull, where his father was a bank manager. David was a bright student and gained a Staffordshire County scholarship which took him to Denstone College at Uttoxeter. From here he was awarded an open exhibition in natural sciences to Gonville and Caius C