People and wildlife in the Tristan da Cunha islands.

Abstract

Over 60 years ago, Peter Beighton and I both attended Arnold School, in the Lancashire town of Blackpool - a place, according to a music hall recital, 'famous for fresh air and fun'! From there our professional careers have taken us to many fascinating places, including the remotest inhabited island in the world - Tristan da Cunha, in mid-South Atlantic. I was there in 1955 - 1956, as Senior Scientist and Joint Leader of the Gough Island Scientific Survey; Peter has told me that my book about that expedition stimulated his interest and was one factor that drew him to undertake medical studies there in the 1970s. He has also visited and worked on Easter Island and St Helena. So it seems appropriate for me to contribute an essay on a place that has been professionally important to both of us.