Morris was born in London in January 1933, the son of an orthopaedic surgeon, and his family moved to New Zealand when he was a boy.
He was educated at King's College, Auckland, and the University of Otago, where he graduated in medicine in 1956.
[1] He and his Middlemore Hospital colleague Ross Nicholson (1922–2013) pioneered hip replacement surgery in New Zealand.
[3] A right-handed middle-order batsman, described as "an exciting stylist",[4] he scored 45 and 103 in Auckland's victory over Wellington in the 1953–54 Plunket Shield.
[5] His other first-class century was 101 not out in Auckland's victory over Central Districts in the 1952–53 Plunket Shield.