Dixon, Henry Berkeley Franks (Hal) was born in Dublin 16 May 1928. After making a false start at an Irish school Hal came over to Shrewsbury. He entered King's as a Scholar and took a double First in Natural Sciences. He went on to PhD with Frank Young on peptide hormones. He was elected a Fellow in 1953 at the age of 25. Work on peptide hormones led to his long-term interest in the chemistry of proteins. His knowledge of organic chemistry enabled him to solve a vital problem affecting the treatment of patients with Wilson's disease. Hal was Chairman of the Nomenclature Committee of the International Union of Biochemistry and deputy chairman of the editorial board of the 'Biochemical Journal'. In 1964, he spent a year on a UK-USSR exchange visit to the Institute of Molecular Biology. Hal was Vice Provost three times 1981-6; 1994-5 and 1997-8.