After studying History of Art at Manchester University I spent three years in the editorial department of a fine art publishing company. My later career took a detour into the world of information technology, during which time I had the opportunity to live and work for several years in both continental Europe and North America. Having 'retired' from this field of endeavour I now devote my time to researching mainly: English and French eighteenth, and late nineteenth century art and architecture; and European garden history from the medieval period to that of the great landscape gardeners, Capability Brown and Humphry Repton.