[1] He was educated at Stowe School, Sprot was forbidden from following his father into the army,[2] and initially worked as a banker in the City of London.

[3] On the outbreak of World War II, Sprot joined his father's old regiment, the Royal Scots Greys[3][2] and was commissioned in 1941.

[3] Serving in Palestine on internal security duties, Sprot then moved with his regiment to the Western Desert, where he took part in the Second Battle of El Alamein.

[3][2] After World War II, Sprot remained with Royal Scots Greys in Germany until 1952, before later also serving in Libya, Egypt and Jordan.

[2] At the request of his uncle, Sir Duncan Hay,[3] 10th Baronet of Smithfield and Haystoun, Sprot moved to the Riddell estate[4] near Peebles, which he subsequently inherited.