A review of the scientific and literary accomplishments of Professor R.G. Macfarlane CBE, FRS.

This article gives an account of some of the pioneer work of Professor R.G. Macfarlane CBE, FRS in haemostasis and fibrinolysis. His Cascade hypothesis, which together with the Waterfall, became the most cited of all papers on blood coagulation in the latter part of the 20th century, is described, together with its rebuttal and defence. Macfarlane had the gift of writing in elegant prose and his papers on the philosophy of science and his biographies of Lord Florey and Fleming are reviewed. The biography of Sir Alexander Fleming is a great work that deserves to be on the shelves of every library.