He was educated at Bryanston School in Dorset, where he developed his interest in art and drama under the leadership of the headmaster, Thorold Coade.
He undertook National Service in Cyprus as an intelligence officer monitoring Arabic language broadcasts.
In 1950, he started four years at Goldsmiths College, University of London, and was inspired enough to attend the Festival of Britain on the South Bank twice in 1951.
Early on in his publishing career, with his theatrical background, he was offered Peter Cook's role in Beyond the Fringe on the tour of Australia.
In 1962, Nikolaus Pevsner persuaded Mackenzie-Kerr to become designer and joint editor of the Victorian Society Annual with Ian Sutton, a colleague at Thames & Hudson.