Gathorne Robert Girdlestone (1881–1950), often known as GRG, was a pioneering orthopaedic surgeon, the founder of the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre, and the first Nuffield Professor of orthopaedic surgery at the University of Oxford.

[1] Gathorne Robert Girdlestone was born in 1881, the son of Robert Baker Girdlestone, Canon of Christ Church, Oxford[2] and first Principal of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford.

In 1943 Girdlestone described an Orthopedic procedure which is intended to rescue hip joints in humans[3] and more commonly these days, in animals.

The procedure, a Femoral head ostectomy – also known as a Femoral head and neck ostectomy – is a salvage procedure, mostly used in cases of severe damage through Hip dysplasia or Arthritis in which the Head (and, sometimes, the Neck) of the Femur are removed, allowing fibrous tissue to grow in place, creating effectively, a pseudo-joint.

It is difficult to know whether he would have been pleased with this honour, as he had refused to allow the Wingfield Hospital to bear his name.