1946 - 2025
Obituary by Jonathan Goddard
Peter Thompson was born on 9 January 1946 in Crumpsall, Manchester, although those who knew him would struggle to detect any accent; he delighting in telling that he was made to attend elocution lessons before moving south to attend Dulwich College.
His father was from Manchester; his mother from Sussex. They had met during the war whilst in London. His father subsequently opened a factory in West Kensington, making gas meters, which is why the family moved to Dulwich when Peter was eight. Peter was very proud of his association with Dulwich College and maintained a life-long connection with the school; he was a Governor from 2013 to 2018.
He studied medicine at King’s College Hospital, London qualifying in 1970. He stayed in London and the Southeast for his surgical training, then enhanced his skills with 18 months in South Africa, returning to complete his urological training back at King’s and The Institute of Urology. He was appointed jointly as a urologist to both King’s and Dartford replacing Mr Sidney Tuffill at Joyce Green Hospital in Dartford. He was director of surgery at Dartford & Gravesham NHS Trust from 1985 - 1988. When the new Darent Hospital opened in 2000, Peter moved to King’s full time and was appointed the lead clinician at the department of urology there. In 2009, Peter was the President of the Urology Section of the Royal Society of Medicine, he hosted the Winter Overseas meeting in Oberlech. Training and in particular the welfare of trainees and their progress was so important for him. He was Training Programme Director, South Thames.
Peter served in the Royal Navy, an experience which fed his love of travel. He attained the rank of Lieutenant Commander and received the Royal Naval Reserve Decoration (awarded between 1908 and 1999 for service of at least 15 years). He forged strong relationships with the urology communities in Sri Lanka, China and Argentina. He was Consultant Urological Surgeon to Edward VII Hospital, Bermuda, visiting Honorary Professor to the Capital and University Hospitals in Beijing and an honorary member of the Beijing and the Sri Lankan Urological Associations. At home he was the President of the Urology Section of the Royal Society of Medicine in 2009 - 2010. He was made a Hunterian Professor at the Royal College of Surgeons of England presenting his lecture at the 2016 BAUS Annual Scientific Meeting in Liverpool on the topic of "The difficulty interpreting endotoxaemia post transrectal prostate biopsy".
Peter also had a love of history and was a board member of the History Office of the EAU. Along with Dominic Hodgson, he attended a British Library training course on taking oral histories and, between them, they collected several life stories of well-known urologists. Keen to promote the history of King’s, and to remind people of Josph Lister’s time there, he arranged several talks and symposia at the Royal College of Surgeons, the Royal Society and King’s, for the Lister centenary in 2012.
Peter passed away on 27 July 2025, leaving his partner, Sarah and children, Elizabeth and George. A memorial service was held on Friday 19 September 2025 at St Peter’s Church, Ightham, Kent.
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