SIR GEORGE K. RADDA began his career as a chemistry student in Budapest, Hungary. In 1956 he left the country and arrived in England, where he finished his first class degree at Merton College before going on to complete his PhD in California. He returned to England for a lectureship at Oxford in 1969. In recognition of his pioneering research, which opened up the study of the workings of the living body, Radda was given a chair in 1984 by the British Heart Foundation, a post he still holds. He is also a non-executive Director of British Technology Group (BTG), and Chairman of the National Cancer Research Institute. He was Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Medical Research Council from 1996 until his retirement in 2004. He has also been awarded many distinguished prizes throughout his scientific career. He is an Honorary Member of the American Heart Association. Sir George Radda is the new head of the merged departments of Physiology and Human Anatomy and Genetics at the University of Oxford and Chairman of the Singapore Bioimaging Consortium in Singapore. His main research interests centre on the biochemical basis and cellular functions in heart disease.