The mayor of Wandsworth Councillor Professor Brian Prichard CBE has died, it was revealed today.

Councillor Prichard, 77, died late last night at St George’s Hospital in Tooting following a short illness, the Town Hall confirmed this afternoon.

Coun Prichard, who represented East Putney ward for the past 20 years as well as others in the borough including Furzedown ward from 1976 to 1990, was first elected to the council in 1964 and followed in long established family footsteps in serving in public life.

His grandfather the Rev Alfred Prichard was Mayor of Battersea from 1930 to 1931, while his father Sir Norman Prichard held the same post between 1935 and 1936 as did his uncle Douglas Prichard from 1951 to 1952.

As well as local politics, Coun Prichard worked in the fields of medicine and learning, specialising in clinical pharmacology, high blood pressure management and drug and alcohol detox services. He was formerly Chairman of the Institute of Alcohol Studies and a non-executive director of Richmond Pharmacology.

He was a founder member of the Conservative Medical Society and was awarded a CBE in 1996 in recognition of his long service to medicine.

His duties on the council included serving on the children's services, adult social services, health, housing, planning and transportation, audit and standards and ethics committees. He was formerly chairman of the Conservative Group for nine years and chairman of the Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education.

He was educated locally, attending West Hill Primary School, Battersea Grammar School and he qualified in medicine at St George's.

He is survived by his wife Denise and his four children.

Council leader Edward Lister said: "Brian spent his whole life helping others, in both his work in the field of medicine and in his role as a local councillor. His loss will be greatly felt by all those who were lucky enough to have known him. Our thoughts and prayers at this time go out to his wife and children."