Bruce was born in 1927 in Stockport.  So, his early childhood years were during the ‘Great Depression.’ Life in the Newton household cannot have been easy, as Bruce’s father had been injured during the Great War of 1914-18 and at the time was only taking a small part time income from maintaining the electrical circuits at the local dog track.
Somewhat against all the odds which were stacked against him Bruce excelled at the local primary school and went on to win a scholarship to the Grammar School in Manchester.
As a teenager Bruce continued to do well in his school studies, apparently showing a significant aptitude for the science subjects. This scientific interest was further nurtured at home by the procurement of an industrial scale home chemistry set (funded by paper round earnings) – I recall my grandmothers’ tales of the somewhat alarming reactions which Bruce created in the family kitchen.
When not at school, or creating chemical chaos in the family kitchen; Bruce was an enthusiastic Boy Scout, Cyclist, Swimmer, and Hillwalker – documenting many of his adventures with photographs that he processed and printed himself (By that stage my grandfather had been given a role in the Home Defence Service – and had procured darkroom equipment as part of the war effort).
Bruce became a young leader with the Scout Association and achieved the Kings Scout Award as well as being chosen to represent Greater Manchester Scouts at Baden Powells funeral.
Upon completion of his school studies in 1945 Bruce joined the Royal Navy. At this time the Allies campaign in the ‘Far East’ was still ongoing.
After a very brief spell of basic military training which took place in Skegness (apparently a totally frozen and miserable experience) Bruce was deployed to the pacific theatre of operations abord HMS Theseus (a light fleet aircraft carrier). Having completed his Able-Rate qualifications on passage south through Suez, Bruce’s scientific and technical expertise were rapidly recognised and he was promoted to the rate of Leading Radar and Electrical Mechanician.
Hostilities finished later that same year, however Bruce remained on board HMS Theseus for the entirety of his period of National Service.
When his time came to return to Civvy-Street he was offered a choice of either accepting a Commission as an Electrical Engineering Officer with the Royal Navy or taking a ‘De-Mob’ scholarship to go to university – He accepted the latter matriculating in 1948; going up to Cambridge University where he studied Natural Sciences as an Undergraduate at Peterhouse College.
At least one undergraduate long vacation was spent touring post war Europe by motorcycle and further indulging in his hobby of photography.
On completion of his time as an Undergraduate Bruce remained at Peterhouse as a research student undertaking a PhD in Pathology which he completed in 1954. It was during his PhD that his research interests focussed in on Parasitology.
Having completed his PhD Bruce was made a Bye-Fellow by Peterhouse college. Subsequently (in 1958) he was made an Emeritus Fellow by Darwin College.
It was during his Post-graduate time at Cambridge that he met and married Alison.
After their marriage (and after completing their respective PhDs) the newly weds escaped the confines of the university flats on Hills Road and moved into a quaint but very small riverside cottage in the village of Linton – after a few years, whether due to my imminent arrival (or the tendency of the cottage to flood every winter) they subsequently moved to Dullingham (at that time a small and still very traditional East Anglian village) where they purchased a large (and somewhat run down) mansion, which had been the property of a former bookmaker who had fallen on hard times.
Despite the conflicting demands of restoring a rundown Victorian ‘pile’ and new parenthood Bruces career in Parasitology developed at a rapid pace with his research focus becoming the study of the biochemical aspects of Trypanosomiasis. This work led to him being appointed as the director of the Medical Research Council Unit at the Molteno Institute of Parasitology in Cambridge.
Amongst the many other roles and responsibilities that went with his position; Bruce was appointed to the World Health Organisations expert advisory panel on parasitic diseases; a role which led to a lot of time being spent overseas undertaking advisory work on projects such as the control of Malaria in East Africa and the eradication of Chagas disease in the Amazon basin.
In 1980 he was elected to serve as President of the British Society of Parasitology and in the same year he chaired the European Multicolloquium on Parasitology in Cambridge.
What Bruce had enjoyed most about his chosen specialism was being actively involved in scientific research work and although flattered by the accolades for his work and the increasing number of ‘expert’ appointments, he did become increasingly frustrated by the huge administrative load that came with his many senior roles; therefore, when the chance came for him to take his retirement in the mid 1980’s he leapt at it.
Bruce and Alison had always had a love of Devon and Cornwall and therefore when the opportunity had presented itself for them to purchase a rural property there in the early 1980’s they had done so – Within a month of retirement they had sold up the still not completely renovated Victorian pile in East Anglia and they had relocated to the South West peninsula.
Rosemarsland, their new home was blessed with an idyllic location being surrounded by large gardens and woods and adjacent to a nature reserve. This allowed Alison and Bruce to pursue their joint loves of gardening and an enjoyment of nature in a location that they termed ‘their own little bit of paradise.’
Bruce and Alison were both blessed with remarkably good health well into their late 80s. Throughout their retirement years they lived for each other and for their house and gardens – So much so that Bruce only left the South West Peninsula on four occasions in the last thirty years of his life.
 
Dr Andrew Newton
(Son)