Mullion and Lizard GP Dr Peter Cuff dies aged 93

Dr Peter Cuff was a doctor for Mullion, Cadgwith, Ruan Minor and The Lizard during the 1970s and 80s, caring for countless people in that time.

His son Chris, who followed in his father’s footsteps as a doctor, said Dr Cuff enjoyed being able to help people at their most difficult times.

“He was somebody who was dedicated to the community, but he loved meeting people and being with people, hearing their stories of their lives – and being part of their lives.

“That part of the human experience and human life - that was really important to him. He took great satisfaction and enjoyment from that,” he said.

Dr Cuff was born in Newquay in 1926 but his family moved away when he was five, to the south coast.

He subsequently qualified as a doctor and worked in the north of England for a time, before being headhunted for a return to Cornwall in 1969.

For many years prior, Dr Cuff had been bringing his young family to the Mullion area for holidays and in that time they had experienced their fair share of childhood scrapes and resultant trips to the doctor.

It was during these trips that Dr Cuff had got to know the village GP Geoff Wood.

When Dr Wood decided to expand the practice, it was Dr Cuff he approached to be his new partner. And as his son recalled: “My dad hesitated for a millisecond and then said, ‘Yes please!’”

The family moved from west Yorkshire that same year and Dr Cuff continued to work from Mullion up to his retirement in 1990.

Initially the surgery was based out of a consulting room on the side of Dr Wood’s house, as was common for that era. When the waiting area inside was full, patients would line up on a bench in the garden.

In the mid-1970s Mullion Health Centre was built, with another surgery built on the green at The Lizard, followed by a consulting surgery at Ruan Minor in the 1980s.

Up to that point, outlying consulting would take place in the sitting rooms of volunteered houses in each village.

Being a rural doctor close to many miles of coastline, Dr Cuff was often thrown into unusual situations, including being lowered over the edge of cliffs to reach patients.

On one occasion he was winched down to a patient who had broken her ankle at Kynance Cove and began treating her – only to find she was an orthopaedic surgeon.

He was also branch chairman of the Lizard Lifeboat for a time and would often accompany crews on shouts, despite getting incredibly seasick.

Dr Cuff was a great advocate of home delivery births and delivered a huge number of babies in the Mullion and Lizard area during his 21 years of working there.

He and Dr Wood were not afraid to introduce technology to the practice and decided to introduce VHF radios as a way of being contacted when out on call, in case of emergency or for follow on visits.

Such was their respect in the community that the villages they served raised a significant amount money for the equipment over six months, through the Lizard and District Doctors’ Radio Fund.

Dr Cuff and Dr Wood retired together in 1990, with the community holding a presentation evening at Mullion School for them, attended by large numbers of people.

Dr Cuff has four children, Susan, Chris, Rosemary and Virginia, along with 13 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. His late wife Barbara passed away in 2000.

Chris joined his father at the Mullion practice as a doctor in 1986 and continued after his retirement, meaning there was a Dr Cuff in Mullion continually from 1969 through to 2010.

Chris said while work played a big part in his father’s life, family time was equally important.

“He was very committed to his family, supporting us and taking enjoyment from all family things,” he said.

Shortly after retiring Dr Cuff moved back to Yorkshire. He died in his sleep on Saturday, February 15 and his funeral will be held in Yorkshire on March 11.