Jack Lindsay Swann was a general surgeon in Melbourne, Australia. He was born in Caulfield, Melbourne, on 17 November 1921, the only child of Roy Barker and Irene May Swann née Matchett. His early education was at Caulfield Grammar School and his final four years of school were at Scotch College in

Maurice White Falloon was head of the department of surgery at Wanganui Hospital, New Zealand. He was born in Masterton, New Zealand, on 24 July 1921, the son of John William Archibald Falloon, a sheep farmer, and Grace née Miller, a farmer’s daughter. His father was the longstanding chairman of the

Geoff Cutler was a surgeon in New South Wales, Australia. He was born on 29 February 1920 in Manly, a suburb of Sydney. He was the second of the three sons of Arthur and Ruby Cutler. Their father was a sales representative for Remington, who had been a crack shot and twice winner at Bisley. He was k

Frank Ham was born in Kew, schooled at Scotch College, Melbourne, and obtained his MB.BS at the University of Melbourne in 1955. He courted and married Elizabeth Bennett in 1957 whilst training for his Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons which he obtained in 1961. He set off

Ellery Arthur Mulvihill Ryan was born in 1917 in Melbourne, the son of a leading ophthalmologist who exerted a great influence on his son's character and interest in sport of many kinds. He went to school as a boarder at Xavier College from the age of six till he was eighteen and left with the prize

John Victor Leonard Colman graduated from Sydney University in 1946 and commenced his internship at Sydney Hospital. He always wanted to be a surgeon. He followed the well established track of the day to Great Britain and commenced surgical training at Trindal Hospital in Aylesbury. He remained in E

Geoffrey Scarlett was born on 3 January 1928 in Sydney, the son of a businessman, Wilfred Lea Scarlett, and Constance Mary, née Tuttill. Educated at De La Salle College, Ashfield, Sydney and the University of Sydney Medical School, Scarlett qualified MB BS in 1951. During his career he held posts

Neri qualified MB BS at Madras University in 1945 and was resident medical officer at Madras General Hospital from 1945 to 1947. Coming to Britain, he held house posts at the Weston-super-Mare Hospital and at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, before becoming a registrar at Whipps Cross Hospital.

Having qualified in Sydney, Bob Smith did his junior training as RMO at the Manly Hospital, Sydney and the Royal Hobart Hospital, Tasmania. He then came to England to specialise in surgery and worked as an SHO at the Leicester General and St James Hospital, Balham, and as a registrar at St George's.

Ian James Gordon was a consultant surgeon in Bendigo, Australia. He was born in Aberdeen on 29 October 1924. His father, James Lendrum Gordon, was a mercantile marine officer and his mother, Mary Ironside Sherriffs, was the daughter of a farmer. He was educated at Robert Gordon's College, Aberdeen,

James Russell Fergusson Downie (Jim) was born on 5 November, 1932 to George and Gertrude Downie at St Georges Hospital, Kew. He spent his childhood in Auburn attending school firstly at Auburn South Primary School, then Gardenvale, the Melbourne High School where he matriculated with distinction. Th

Edward (‘Ted’) Watson was a general surgeon at Wellington Hospital, New Zealand. He was born in Dunedin, the eldest child of Vera Christian Watson née Cameron and Edward Baden Watson; his father was a surgeon, his mother a music teacher. He had two siblings – Arthur and Diane. Ted’s childhood years