Roger Gilbert Bannister was born in Harrow, England, on 23rd March 1929. He was one of two children with a sister, Joyce. Both parents, Ralph and Alice, were from working-class backgrounds.
He grew up in London and Bath and in 1946 went to Exeter College, Oxford to read medicine. He completed his medical training at St Mary’s Hospital, London, where he worked for 34 years.
In 1955, he married Swedish artist Moyra Elver Jacobsson in Basel, Switzerland; they had four children.
In 1957 he was called up for National Service in the Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC).
Sir Roger died in Oxford on 3rd March, 2018 at the age of 88. His wife died in Oxford on 4th November 2022, at the age of 94.