Sir Eric Jackson Thomas FMedSci (24 March 1953 – 10 November 2023) was an English academic who was

vice-chancellor A vice-chancellor (commonly called a VC) serves as the chief executive of a university in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Kenya, other Commonwealth of Nati ...

of the

University of Bristol The University of Bristol is a public university, public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Br ...

from 2001 to 2015. From 2003 to 2007, he was chair of the

Worldwide Universities Network The Worldwide Universities Network (WUN) is a non-profit consortium of 24 research-intensive universities founded in 2000. It provides financial and infrastructural support to member universities to support international research collaboration. ...

and was the president of

Universities UK Universities UK (UUK) is an advocacy organisation for universities in the United Kingdom. It began life in the early 20th century through informal meetings of vice-chancellors of a number of universities and principals of university colleges and ...

from 2011 to 2013.

Education and career

Thomas graduated in medicine from the

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...

in 1976. He trained as an

obstetrician Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgi ...

and

gynaecologist Gynaecology or gynecology (see American and British English spelling differences) is the area of medicine concerned with conditions affecting the female reproductive system. It is often paired with the field of obstetrics, which focuses on pre ...

and worked at both the universities of

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

and

. He obtained an MD-by-thesis in 1987 via his research into

endometriosis Endometriosis is a disease in which Tissue (biology), tissue similar to the endometrium, the lining of the uterus, grows in other places in the body, outside the uterus. It occurs in women and a limited number of other female mammals. Endomet ...

. In 1991, he was appointed professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at the

University of Southampton The University of Southampton (abbreviated as ''Soton'' in post-nominal letters) is a public university, public research university in Southampton, England. Southampton is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universit ...

, becoming head of the School of Medicine in 1995 and dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Biological Sciences in 1998. He was a consultant gynaecologist from 1987 to 2001. In August 2011, Thomas became president of

, having previously been its vice-president, chair of its England and Northern Ireland Council and chair of its Research Policy Committee. He was chair of the board of CASE Europe, a member of the board of CASE and was a commissioner of the Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission. He chaired the government Taskforce into Increasing Voluntary Giving in Higher Education, which reported in 2004. He was chair of the Worldwide Universities Network from 2003 – 2007. He was a member of the board of the South-West Regional Development Agency from 2002–8.

Personal life

Thomas was married and had two children. His interests included

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

and

Newcastle United Football Club Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Since the formation of the club in 1881 ...

. He was a Deputy Lieutenant of the City and County of Bristol, and was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

in the 2013 Birthday Honours for services to higher education. Thomas died of cancer on 10 November 2023, at the age of 70.

References

External links

The Vice Chancellor's page on the website for Bristol University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Eric 1953 births 2023 deaths Vice-chancellors of the University of Bristol Academics of the University of Bristol Academics of the University of Sheffield Academics of the University of Southampton Alumni of Newcastle University Fellows of the Academy of Medical Sciences (United Kingdom) Knights Bachelor English gynaecologists English obstetricians People from Hartlepool