Born in the north east of England in 1951. Educated at St Aidan's grammar school in Sunderland, County Durham. Joined the Royal Air Force in 1967 as a medical apprentice at RAF Halton in Buckinghamshire. Retired from the RAF as a Warrant Officer in 1991, leaving RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus, for Brisbane, Australia. Employed as a senior policy officer for environmental health issues at Queensland Health, NSW Health and the Northern Territory Health Services before retiring in 2010. Now improving his photographic skills as a wildlife photographer, living at Forest Lake, Qld.