Professor Arthur W. Lees graduated in Physics and remained Manchester University for three years research. After completing his PhD, he joined the Central Electricity Generating Board, initially developing Finite Element codes then later resolving plant problems. After a sequence of positions he was appointed head of the Turbine Group for Nuclear Electric Plc. He moved to Swansea University in 1995 and has been active in both research and teaching. He is a regular reviewer of many technical journals and was, until his recent retirement, on the editorial boards of the Journal of Sound & Vibration and Communications on Numerical Methods in Engineering. His research interests include structural dynamics, rotor dynamics, inverse problems and heat transfer. Professor Lees is a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and a Fellow of the Institute of Physics, a Chartered Engineer and a Chartered Physicist. He was a member of Council of the Institute of Physics, 2001-5. He is now Professor Emeritus at Swansea University, but remains an active researcher.