John Dudley Bradshaw
(1939-2025)
NZAM PhD Lond FRSNZ
John Bradshaw was a distinguished geologist and a leading authority on tectonics in the South Pacific region.
Born in Stoke-on-Trent, England, in 1939, Bradshaw pursued foundational academic training in geology with a Bachelor of Science (Honours) and a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of London in 1963 on the Precambrian and Paleozoic rocks of western Finistere (France).
Bradshaw joined the University of Canterbury’s Department of Geology in 1966, where he went on to build a remarkable academic career spanning more than four decades, being head of Department of Geological Sciences from 1979-82. He was one of the department’s longest-serving faculty members, known for his expertise in structural geology, tectonic evolution, and terrane analysis with a field focus on New Zealand, Antarctica, South America, and the wider southern Pacific margin. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand (FRSNZ) in 1999 in recognition of his outstanding contributions to Earth sciences.
His research made enduring contributions to understanding the geological architecture of Zealandia and its place in global tectonic frameworks. Bradshaw published widely in internationally recognised journals on such topics as:
- The nature and boundaries of New Zealand terranes
- Cretaceous tectonic transitions from convergent to extensional regimes
- Stratigraphic and provenance relationships across the South Island
- The role of Zealandia in Gondwana fragmentation
A much-loved mentor and supervisor, Bradshaw championed rigorous field geology and was deeply committed to training successive generations of geoscientists. His students recall his passion for detailed structural mapping and his insistence on an evidence-based approach to interpreting Earth’s dynamic crust.
John’s impact extended beyond his publications; Mount Bradshaw in northern Victoria Land, Antarctica — named by the New Zealand Antarctic Place-Names Committee — commemorates his role in New Zealand’s Antarctic geological expeditions in the 1970s and 1980s. John was awarded the Hochstetter Lecturer Award by the Geoscience Society of New Zealand in 1980.
John served on the Ross Dependency Research committee and was a member of the SCAR committee (1987-1995) on the Antarctic lithosphere, shaping research priorities in structural and historical geology; was the New Zealand coordinator of the BAS-USAP-NZAP West Antarctic project (SPRITE) from 1986; and was on the Royal Society of New Zealand’s National Committee for Antarctic Research from 1981-88. John was awarded the New Zealand Antarctic Medal in 2006.
John is survived by his family, a global community of students and collaborators, and the broad scientific legacy embodied in his work — a legacy that continues to advance understanding of Earth’s tectonic processes.
Selected Publications
Bradshaw, J.D., Andrews, P.B. & Adams, C. J. 1981. Carboniferous to Cretaceous on the Margin of Gondwana. In, M. M. Cresswell & P. Vella eds, Gondwana V., Balkema, Rotterdam: 217-221
Bradshaw, J.D. (1989). Cretaceous geotectonic patterns in the New Zealand region. Tectonics, 8(4), 803–820.
Bradshaw, J. D. (1993). A review of the Median Tectonic Zone: terrane boundaries and terrane amalgamation near the Median Tectonic line. New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics, 36, 117-125.
Bradshaw, J. D. 1994. The Marlborough Schist: terrane characterisation, terrane distribution, and schist nomenclature. New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics 37: 131-134.
These works, among many others, remain foundational references for researchers examining terrane evolution, crustal growth, and Gondwana breakup in the southern hemisphere.
Bradshaw JD., Vaughan APM., Millar IL., Flowerdew MJ., Trouw RAJ., Fanning CM. and Whitehouse MJ. (2012) Permo-Carboniferous conglomerates in the Trinity Peninsula Group at View Point, Antarctic Peninsula: sedimentology, geochronology and isotope evidence for provenance and tectonic setting in Gondwana. Geological Magazine 149(4): 626-644. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S001675681100080X.