BSc Anat and Physiol 1936; MB ChB Manch 1939, MD 1954.
Ashley was born on 8 April 1913. He studied medicine at Manchester and was active in the students union. Once qualified, he became house surgeon at MRI. He was then commissioned in the RAMC in 1940 and was on active service in Siam and Burma from 1942 to 1945. Ashley returned to Manchester in 1946 as a demonstrator in anatomy. In 1948 he took a secondment as lecturer in anatomy at Makere Colleh, Uganda, returning to Manchester in 1950 having developed a strong interest in embryology. Ashley became one of the first wardens at Woolton Hall in 1959, retaining his lectureship part time. He was an active member of the Literary and Philosophical Society, a fellow of Manchester Medical Society and a member of Anatomical Society of Great Britain. Ashley died on 21 May 1972.