Painter, printmaker and draughtsman, born at Oxenhope, near Haworth, Yorkshire. Studied at Keighley School of Art and at the Royal College of Art under Robert Austin and Malcolm Osborne. Exhibited RA, SWE, RBA, in the provinces and widely abroad. The Victoria & Albert Museum and Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester, among a number of provincial galleries, hold his work. Dolby was on the staff of Bournemouth College of Art in the 1930s, then was head of Blackburn School of Art, 1947–69. He served in the Royal Navy during World War II and wrote a book called The Steel Navy. His work ranged over a variety of subjects, including industrial scenes, interiors and abstract paintings of the sea. Lived at Southampton.