Frederic Calland Williams

Sir Frederic Calland Williams, CBE, FRS (26 June 1911 in Stockport – 11 August 1977 in Manchester), known as 'F.C. Williams' or (less often) 'Freddie Williams', was an English engineer.

Education

Williams was educated at Stockport Grammar School and the University of Manchester where he was awarded Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees. He went on to received his DPhil degree in 1936 after studying at Magdalen College, Oxford.

Research

Working at the Telecommunications Research Establishment (TRE) he was a substantial contributor during World War II to the development of radar.

In 1946 he was appointed as head of the Electrical Engineering Department of the University of Manchester. There, with Tom Kilburn, he pioneered the first stored-program digital computer, the Manchester Mark 1 computer.

Williams is also recognised for his invention of the Williams-Kilburn tube, an early memory device.

Awards and honours

Williams was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1950. His nomination reads