Tributes for Ian Gillespie 1953 - 2021

Created - 23.12.2021

On Thursday 11 October this year Ian passed away after engaging in his passion, playing the beautiful ecclesiastical organ at a Sunday morning service in his hometown of Edinburgh.

Ian was an important part of the Scottish and UK Interventional Radiology scene for over three decades having trained in Radiology at the Royal Infirmary Edinburgh and received further training in IR in 1987 at the Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto Canada where his oldest daughter Sarah was born. Ian spent the remainder of his career at the Royal Infirmary developing the newly discovered field of percutaneous endovascular intervention. His expertise in this field enabled patients to access minimally invasive procedures that hitherto would have involved open surgery with its associated mortality, morbidity and hospital stay. The fundamental paradigm shift in the management of arterial disease to a minimally invasive approach required Interventional Radiologists to take a more clinical role, and to ensure appropriate evidence was obtained to support these new therapies. This is where Ian excelled, developing an evidence-based approach to his practice and being a primary researcher in important randomised trials such as BASIL (Bypass v Angioplasty in Severe Ischaemia of the Leg); a trial which is still cited today.

Ian was an influential figure in the UK and European Interventional Radiology scene making a significant commitment to the BSIR (British Society of Interventional Radiology) where he was instrumental in the development of annual meetings and advanced practice courses, registries and education as well as serving on Council. He had an important role assisting CIRSE (Cardiovascular and Interventional society of Europe) in its formative years.

In 2006 Ian and his family went to Christchurch New Zealand for a six-month sabbatical. He was embraced warmly by the kiwi staff and all who met him, forming a lifelong connection with New Zealand.

In addition to all the professional attributes Ian will be remembered as a husband, father, friend, and mentor.is mastery of understated, well observed, self-effacing and slightly maudlin sense of humour endeared him to all those fortunate to know him. His passion for music, be it singing or playing the organ, was only matched by his passion for the Magpies combined with a ham and Pease Pudding stottie.

This easy, convivial and collegial approach to work and life made Ian a popular figure wherever he went including visits to Inverness and Wick, where he mischievously claimed his greatest achievement was introducing the double contrast enema to Wick Hospital; forever the innovator!

Vale Ian, musician, pioneer, teacher, mentor, friend and above all family man. Our thoughts are with his wife Morag and daughters Sarah and Alison.

Tim Buckenham

From Hamish Ireland and John Murchison:

Ian Gillespie, former interventional radiologist at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh has died at the age of 68 following a brain haemorrhage.

Ian was a superb vascular interventional radiologist – meticulous, caring, an exceedingly safe pair of hands and the kind of IR who you’d want doing your own angioplasty or EVAR. He set and met very high standards for himself and provided leadership for his colleagues. Sometimes we struggled to achieve his standards and were met with a quizzical faint smile and a raised eyebrow. His opinions were wise and delivered with enviable gravitas. Being very tall emphasised his superiority, although the six-inch extensions stitched at the bottom of his scrub-trousers, which were in a different shade of green, somehow brought him back down to earth.

Ian spent his early years in Newcastle attending Dame Allen’s Boy’s School before moving to Dundee to study medicine. After radiology training in Edinburgh and an interventional radiology fellowship in Toronto he became a consultant interventional radiologist in Edinburgh Royal Infirmary in 1988. He maintained his childhood Geordie links, regularly travelling back to watch Newcastle United at St James’s Park where both Ian and his brother Graeme were season ticket holders. He married Morag in 1986 and had two daughters, Sarah and Alison.

In 1997, he managed to lure his good friend Tim Buckenham from London to Edinburgh to take up the Chair of Radiology at Edinburgh University. Tim loved working with Ian, or the “curmudgeon” as Tim christened him, but returned to his native New Zealand after a few years in Edinburgh.

Ian also wondered if the grass might be greener elsewhere. In 2006, Ian and Morag followed Tim to do a long sabbatical in NZ and found that the grass was indeed greener, the pinot noir was noirer and life was good. He loved his time in NZ and returned to Edinburgh with new vim.

Ian grew into a role as an interventional sage and became well known nationally, partly through the BSIR. He co-authored several high-profile multicentre trials and wrote insightful book chapters. Locally he initiated and led the EVAR and TEVAR service. He became the Training Programme Director, putting his own stamp on matters and contributing to the success of the South East Scotland Training Scheme. He was always friendly and sociable and got on well with all grades of staff.

A few years before retiring, Ian jumped the fence again to work with his good friends in Inverness. He enjoyed this sojourn – but we couldn’t help smiling when he told us he’d been rostered for a barium list in Wick!

Outside of work, Ian was a talented musician, playing piano and organ and he sang in church and NHS Christmas choirs. After retiring, he volunteered for the charity Fresh Start, helping to decorate homes for the homeless and joining a team feeding the homeless. Ian’s funeral service was held at St Peter’s Episcopal church where Ian had been a choir member and occasional relief organ player. Ian is survived by his wife Morag, Sarah who followed Ian into medicine and is currently based in Newcastle completing her PhD, and Alison, whose wedding was celebrated earlier this year.