Lookalike steps in for retiring surgeon
After 30 years of travelling to New Plymouth once a month to complete plastic, cosmetic and reconstructive surgeries, Martin Rees is handing over the reigns.
But you may not notice he’s left. Rees’ replacement for his Taranaki duties is Tristan de Chalain, a man who just happens to be his doppelganger.
From March de Chalain, 63, will take over the three days every four weeks that Rees currently works inside the Carefirst Medical Centre on Tukapa St in Westown. The pair, who share an uncanny resemblance, have known each other and worked together for 20 years, and de Chalain was the best man at Rees’ wedding.
As well as sharing similar features, both men have an interest in similar types of surgery, have travelled overseas with charitable organisations to help underprivileged children and enjoy seeing the smile on people’s faces after surgery.
‘‘They finish each other’s sentences too,’’ said Carefirst Medical Centre practice nurse Vicky Hughes.
Rees, 70, said he currently does
60 hour weeks and he thinks he needs to slow down a bit, ‘‘pull back’’ and spend more time with his wife. He said he’d had a great time in New Plymouth over the years. One of his stand-out moments from the past three decades was attending Womad and putting his ‘‘silly hat’’ on.
In the time he’s been travelling to New Plymouth for work, he’s never cancelled a single day, despite having to fly in and out of an airport notorious for delayed and cancelled flights.
In fact in 30 years flying down to New Plymouth from Auckland he’s only been forced to drive on four occasions and catch a bus home just once.
de Chalain said Rees had left a massive legacy in the coastal city. ‘‘It’s a daunting pair of shoes to fill,’’ he said.
As for Rees’s final days in Taranaki, he plans to finish his trip with a bang - attending Womad
2018.