‘Tony was the youngest professor to be appointed to this department and he also acted as Regional Microbiologist and Honorary Consultant. His prolific work focussed on infectious and tropical diseases and his papers had a great relevance for developing countries and for children in particular. He published more than 750 peer-reviewed papers and 12 textbooks, participated in numerous national and international committees and received many hundreds of lecture invitations. Despite this enormous workload his office was always open and visitors welcomed by a handshake, cup of tea and a nickname that made them feel at home. He travelled overseas many times to locations such as Brazil and South East Asia. Nothing could be better than a hard days work followed by a brainstorming session at the end of the day with a caipirinha or gin and tonic in hand. Colleagues anticipating his overseas arrival often asked what to do. The response: keep Tony busy, seek ideas for what studies to do, and avoid an idle day in the sun. If he was whistling at the end of the day it meant you had done well!

Tony's primary interest in paediatric infections led to ground-breaking work on meningitis, rotavirus diarrhoea and respiratory infections. He was always fascinated by differences between the profile of infection in developing countries and the UK, and how easily accepted dogmas could come crumbling down by competent research. He encouraged colleagues to undertake research and had the ability to identify promising research projects. Reports of pathogens were thus queuing on his desk, from first reports of Metapneumovirus and Bocavirus in Iran, Yemen, Brazil and Jordan, Cryptosporidium in Kenya, Malawi, Saudi Arabia, Brazil and Gaza, to clinical scores, quantitative PCR and pathogenesis of meningitis in Brazil and Ethiopia. The joint chapter on meningitis published in the present edition exemplifies his work. We have lost a great scientist and an excellent friend.'