William Brumfitt: pioneer of modern microbiology

Born in Ilkley, William Brumfitt was educated at Worksop College in Nottinghamshire, where he shone at science and enjoyed playing rugby. In his youth he played centre three quarter for Yorkshire.

His friend and colleague Jeremy Hamilton-Miller, who worked with him for more than 30 years, says, “Bill was a Yorkshireman and proud of it: his two elder brothers lived there, and he spoke often of the Moors and Dales, although he did not often visit, but he always referred to it as home.

“He was interviewed at St Mary’s Hospital Medical School, which has a long rugby tradition, by Lord Moran, and I gather the crucial question was, ‘What position do you play in rugby?’ His answer, ‘Fly half,’ was deemed satisfactory. He went on to play for the army, and for Gloucester, and was selected for an England trial.”

After qualifying, Brumfitt did his national service, during which he found time to write his MD thesis on iron deficiency anaemia. His PhD topic, researched in Alexander Fleming’s laboratory in the Wright-Fleming Institute, was a study of certain aspects of lysozyme.