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From Ian Ramsay
George trained as a nurse in Nigeria, but wanted to do medicine. He came
to Edinburgh where he worked as a psychiatric nurse while doing A levels at
night school. After several years, he was able to buy a flat at 251 Renfrew
Street which he rented out to fund his way through med school-I was one of his
tenants. This was why he was 10 years older than most of us.
He was an interesting landlord; he had discovered that if the electric
company sent a "red" final notice, they would not cut off the power
if a small payment was made; he would then throw a party with the rest of the
money he had saved for the bill. You knew a party was imminent when the
ordinary bulb in his lounge was changed to a green "party" one; this
had the effect of making the guests look ill/sinister or both.
I shared a surgical residence with him at the old Paisley RAI where his
home brewed beer was legendary and lethal.
Having obtained his membership, he returned to Nigeria as a cardiologist
attached to Ibadan University Medical School; he also built his own hospital.
I last saw George and his wife Christine in August 2011, when they spent
3 very enjoyable days with Eileen & I; we visited all his old haunts in
Glasgow, Edinburgh and the now derelict Paisley RAI. By that time, he had
metastatic ca prostate, but being George, had started building a new, bigger
hospital which was completed shortly before his death.
George was great fun to be with; he had enormous energy, and was larger
than life.
From Jocelyn Young
George was
one of the more colourful characters in the year group in every sense. He was
hugely entertaining and involved himself in many aspects of undergraduate life.
However it was as JHOs in the Royal Alexandra Infirmary the Richard and I got
to know him well. We were on the medical wards along with Mobin Wadee and
George was on the surgical wards with Ian Ramsay and Donald Wallace. The six of
us lived on the top floor just above one of the surgical wards. George was a
keen brewer of beer and rapidly set up a system of large plastic bins from
which emanated the most wonderful "fumes." Visitors queuing
downstairs prior to visiting could not help but notice as George`s brew was
powerful stuff.
It is a great pity that George missed the 40th reunion. It would have been
great to have seen him again before he succumbed to this ghastly disease but he
did manage a visit to Scotland and his old haunts in 2012.
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