Born in Portsmouth in England, Porter grew up in Belfast, where he attended the Harding Memorial School.
[1] A lay preacher, an Orangeman, an Apprentice Boy and a member of the Royal Black Institution,[2] Porter became the leader of the National Union of Protestants in Northern Ireland in 1948.
[3] Ian Paisley was treasurer of the group, but left after Porter refused to join his new Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster.
[7] Porter attended the first meeting of the Ulster Protestant Action group in 1956, but he immediately withdrew.
In a 1964 speech reported in the Belfast Newsletter, he stated: "When you become too friendly with those of different religious persuasion, you find it increasingly hard and difficult to oppose their beliefs – this leads to compromise.