Page 80 - Eclipse - Autumn/Winter 2023

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Page 80 - Eclipse - Autumn/Winter 2023
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of the Worshipful Company of Farmers                                    An accomplished artist and poet, he was
        and a freeman of the City of London.                                    a contributor to the book ‘My Constant
                                                                                Endeavour’, an anthology of poetry by
        We will all remember Peter for his 100%   ROY ARTHUR                    vets and vet nurses, published in 2012.
        commitment, natural flair, wisdom and                                   Writing about himself in this book, he
        kindness. No challenge too great. His   LEONARD BATT                    said: “Research can be a long and lonely
        diplomacy and negotiating skills bringing                               occupation and one needs some respite.
        people together. Wherever he went he                                    Soon after taking up my last post at the
        made a difference – just as he set out to                               RVC, I found a newspaper on a train,
        do as a passionate teenager.
                                                                                advertising a poetry competition. This
        Peter is survived by Gill, their children,                              was the start of reading and writing
        Charlotte, Phillippa and Henry, and                                     poetry in earnest.”
        grandchildren, Harry, Lucy and Edward.
                                                                                As a young man, he enjoyed running
                                                                                and tennis and in 1948, he was present
                                                                                at the Olympic marathon event, which
                                                                                started and finished in Wembley stadium.
                                                                                Roy’s later life was somewhat turbulent.
                                                                                After retirement from the RVC, he
        REX SCARAMUZZI                                                          enjoyed continuing to write poetry,
                                                                                produce etchings, active involvement
                                                                                in amateur dramatics and worked in a
        In August, we received the sad news                                     local bookshop.
        that Professor Rex Scaramuzzi passed
        away. Rex was Professor of Veterinary                                   He was deeply religious and via his
        Physiology in the Department of                                         church was encouraged to assist in the
        Comparative Biomedical Sciences at                                      rehabilitation of ex-convicts by means
        the RVC from 1993 until his retirement   By Julian Wilson, Peter Cargill  of mentorship. Unfortunately, due to his
        in 2010. He was also Marie Curie                                        immensely kind nature, delicate mental
        Professor at L’Institut National de la   Obituary, published in Veterinary Record,   health and outstanding generosity, he
        Recherche Agronomique, Nouzilly,    September 2023                      was defrauded of the majority of his
        France between 2007 and 2010.       A researcher who contributed to science,   remaining wealth by one of his mentees.
                                            the veterinary profession and the arts.  This resulted in the involvement of the
        Rex was an active researcher for more                                   police and social services but with an
        than 45 years, first in Australia and then   Roy Batt was a graduate of Liverpool   unknown outcome.
        with the RVC. He was the author of over   vet school. After working in clinical
        220 peer reviewed papers and        practice in Reading, Berkshire, for a   Despite his circumstances, Roy’s
        undoubtedly made a significant      short while, he returned to Liverpool to   sense of humour remained positive,
        contribution to the veterinary and animal   study human anatomy.        and he held no grudges; however, it
        science literature.                                                     is possibly a lesson to us all that we
                                            His second degree included an       need to do everything within our power
                                            introduction to research method and   as a profession to try to protect our
                                            over the next 30 years he studied brown   colleagues in later life when vulnerability
                                            fat in mice, showing that an inherited   is inevitable.
                                            syndrome including obesity, sterility and   Roy was a lovely brother, uncle, and
                                            deficient bone/muscle growth was due   friend to many and will be sorely missed.
                                            to failed regulation by the hypothalamus.
                                            His research was completed either   “Roy was a quiet man who contributed
                                            while working as a lecturer or in full-time   a huge amount to the science of
                                            research – in the psychology department   mitochondria in mammals”
                                            at Strasbourg, France, the biochemistry
                                            department at Imperial College, London,
                                            Harbor General Hospital, Los Angeles,
                                            USA, and the 51Թ.
                                            Roy was a quiet man who contributed
                                            a huge amount to the science of
                                            mitochondria in mammals. He was the
                                            author of the book ‘The Mitochondrion in
                                            Health and Disease’.



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