Frank Roberts was born in Buenos Aires, 27 October 1907, the son of Henry George Roberts, Preston, and Gertrude Kenyon, Blackburn; he was educated at Bedales, Rugby and Trinity College, Cambridge (Scholar). In 1937 he married Celeste Leila Beatrix (died 1990), daughter of the late Sir Said Shoucair Pasha, Cairo, Financial Adviser to Sudan Government. He died in 1998.

Roberts entered the Foreign Office in 1930, and his diplomatic career included: HM Embassy, Paris [France], 1932-35 and HM Embassy, Cairo [Egypt], 1935-37; Foreign Office, 1937-45; Chargé d’Affaires to Czechoslovak Government, 1943; British Minister in Moscow [Soviet Union], 1945-47; Principal Private Secretary to Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, 1947-49; Deputy High Commissioner (UK) in India, 1949-51; Deputy-Under Secretary of State, Foreign Office, 1951-54; Ambassador to Yugoslavia [later Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Slovenia], 1954-57; United Kingdom Permanent Representative on the North Atlantic Council, 1957-60; Ambassador: to the Soviet Union, 1960-62; to the Federal Republic of Germany, 1963-68; UK Member, FCO Review Committee on Overseas Representation, 1968-69.

He was awarded the GCMG in 1963 (KCMG 1953; CMG 1946); GCVO 1965.