[1] Born on 27 March 1957, a son of Peter Henderson, Baron Henderson of Brompton[2] he was educated at Westminster and Magdalen College, Oxford, initially studying botany and earning a doctorate with a thesis on "The Genetics and Applications of Copper Resistance in Yeast".
[3] He was ordained in 1987 [4] and began his ecclesiastical career in the Diocese of Oxford as curate of Chinnor with Emmington.
He moved to Ireland in 1989 and held incumbencies in the Diocese of Cork, Cloyne and Ross, including Rector of Abbeystrewry Union, Skibberreen.
He plays piano, organ and recorder, especially the music of J S Bach, reads English literature and a wide range of technical books, and enjoys gardening and building.
He has taught music in Darjeeling, been an indoor plant decorator, a self-employed cabinet maker and biotechnology adviser to Andry Montgomery Ltd, which mounts trade exhibitions.