George Keith Batchelor (8 March 1920 – 30 March 2000) was an Australian applied mathematician and fluid dynamicist. He was for many years the Professor of Applied Mathematics in the University of Cambridge, and was founding head of the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (DAMTP). In 1956 he founded the influential Journal of Fluid Mechanics which he edited for some forty years.

As an applied mathematician (and for some years at Cambridge a co-worker with Sir Geoffrey Taylor in the field of turbulent flow), he was a keen advocate of the need for physical understanding and sound experimental basis.

His An Introduction to Fluid Dynamics (CUP, 1967) is still considered a classic of the subject, and has been re-issued in the Cambridge Mathematical Library series, following strong current demand[1]. Unusual for an 'elementary' textbook of that era, it presented a treatment in which the properties of a real viscous fluid were fully emphasised.

First published in 1967, Professor Batchelor's classic text on fluid dynamics is still one of the foremost texts in the subject. The careful presentation of the underlying theories of fluids is still timely and applicable, even in these days of almost limitless computer power. This re-issue should ensure that a new generation of graduate students see the elegance of Professor Batchelor's presentation.