Sir Gordon Ivan Hobday (1 February 1916 – 27 May 2015) was a British scientist who worked on penicillin with Alexander Fleming and is noted for his role as director of the

Boots A boot is a type of footwear. Boot or Boots may also refer to: Businesses * Boot Inn, Chester, Cheshire, England * Boots (company), a high-street pharmacy chain and manufacturer of pharmaceuticals in the United Kingdom * The Boot, Cromer St ...

research team that developed ibuprofen. He later became chairman of Boots.

Biography

Hobday was born in New Sawley, Derbyshire on 1 February 1916. His father, Alexander Thomas Hobday was a lace card punch operator and his mother was Frances Cassandra, née Meads. He attended Long Eaton Grammar School as a child and then studied Chemistry at University College, Nottingham. He continued his post graduate education at the university, under a scholarship and gained a PhD in 1940. Hobday married Margaret Jean Joule on 5 October 1940 and they had one daughter together. In 1995, Margaret died and he remarried on 1 July 2002 to author Patricia Cooper, née Birge. He was the 4th Chancellor of the

University of Nottingham , mottoeng = A city is built on wisdom , established = 1798 – teacher training college1881 – University College Nottingham1948 – university status , type = Public , chancellor ...

, of which university he was a graduate. He was Lord Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire 1983–1991. He was made a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are th ...

in the

1979 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1979 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The appointments were made to celebrate ...

. He died on 27 May 2015, in

King's Mill Hospital King's Mill Hospital is an acute general district hospital serving the population of north Nottinghamshire and parts of Derbyshire and Lincolnshire. It is managed by the Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. The majority of the hospital ...

, Sutton in Ashfield at the age of 99.

Career

Hobday joined Boots & Co as a research assistant after completing his PhD in 1940 and worked his way up through promotions. In 1952, he became head of the research department when the previous head, Jack Drummond was murdered, and re-purposed the department to find treatments for "diseases of civilisation". It was under this mindset that the department looked for an alternative treatment for

rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term autoimmune disorder that primarily affects joints. It typically results in warm, swollen, and painful joints. Pain and stiffness often worsen following rest. Most commonly, the wrist and hands are invol ...

, due to the toxicity of

aspirin Aspirin, also known as acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) used to reduce pain, fever, and/or inflammation, and as an antithrombotic. Specific inflammatory conditions which aspirin is used to treat inc ...

. The programme came up with ibuprofen, which was patented in 1961. In the 1970s, it became an over-the-counter pain killer and the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...

put it on its list of "essential medicines". In 1968, Hobday was appointed the deputy

managing director A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

for Boots, and in 1970, he became the managing director. By 1973, he had become chairman, where he attempted a merger with

Glaxo GSK plc, formerly GlaxoSmithKline plc, is a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with global headquarters in London, England. Established in 2000 by a merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham. GSK is the tent ...

and to buy House of Fraser, but the

Monopolies Commission The Competition Commission was a non-departmental public body responsible for investigating mergers, markets and other enquiries related to regulated industries under competition law in the United Kingdom. It was a competition regulator unde ...

stopped both.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hobday, Gordon 1916 births 2015 deaths Alumni of the University of Nottingham Knights Bachelor Lord-Lieutenants of Nottinghamshire People associated with the University of Nottingham