This article is based on three presidential addresses by Rickman to the British Psychoanalytical Society. From its pages there shines forth his wisdom, his sincerity, his kindness, and his devotion to the cause of science in general and of psychoanalysis in particular. Of special interest to the non-British reader are his views on the future importance of research in the field of group psychology and his suggestions for revising the method of conducting the scientific sessions of our societies.