Surgeon, Race Across the World contestant and Old Boy Mobeen Qureshi (Class of 2009) returned to Bolton School to give the 52nd Tillotson Lecture.
In his address, Mobeen talked about his life at school and fondly recalled his involvement with the rugby team. He revealed that his decision to become a doctor came about because of a setback following his A Levels: he was unable to follow his initial plan of becoming a dentist as he didn’t get the grades needed, but instead received an offer to study Medicine at Glasgow University.
He spoke about meeting his wife, Zainib, during his training, the experience of medical school and his continued studies to become a Trauma and Orthopaedic surgeon. His job now involves diagnosing and treating conditions of the musculoskeletal system including bones, joints and structures that enable movement such as ligaments, tendons, muscles and nerves.
Mobeen took time out of his surgical training following the COVID-19 pandemic to take part in the BBC’s Race Across the World. He and Zainib travelled to Canada, where they were challenged with the task of racing four other teams from Vancouver, British Columbia, to St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, with a fixed budget and no access to mobile phones. He described his adventures travelling across Canada with Zainib, sharing candid stories and speaking about the challenges they faced and overcame. He explained that he had to go two months without his mobile phone, which also meant not speaking to his family throughout that time, and also briefly mentioned experiencing the rare ‘positive side’ of social media, with the huge number of positive comments he and Zainib received while Race Across the World was airing.
He said that he was feeling burned-out and weary after Covid, like many in the medical profession. However, Race Across The World gave him the opportunity to disconnect completely from life and helped both him and Zainib to come back to their careers reenergised.
His adventures have also inspired him to continue travelling, and his family to make some incredible journeys of their own. He and Zainib travelled from Manchester to Istanbul in the summer of 2023 in just four days, while his parents recently drove all the way from Manchester to Lahore, Pakistan, in three weeks to visit family. Mobeen flew out to join them for part of the return trip.
To bring his Tillotson Lecture to a close, Mobeen told the audience that they will have setbacks: he spoke about some of his own, including resitting exams in medical school and during his surgical training, but encouraged everyone to get back up and keep going. He also advised his audience to take every opportunity, and not to be put off by assuming that others will think it’s a bad idea. He said that he never expected anyone to sign off for him to go on Race Across The World, but every person he needed to ask encouraged him to go for it.
The lecture was followed by a lively question and answer session, in which Mobeen was asked more about his Race Across the World experiences and his medical training.
The Tillotson Lecture was inaugurated and supported by the late Marcus Tillotson, himself influential in one of Bolton’s other institutions, the Bolton News. Since the first event in 1971, the lecture series has attracted eminent speakers who have delivered thought-provoking lectures to the school community.
The 52nd Tillotson Lecture is available to re-watch in full:
See more photos from the night:
