John Ure was born on 5 July 1931, son of Tam Ure; he was educated at Uppingham School and Magdalene College, University of Cambridge, later taking an advanced management programme at Harvard Business School. In 1972 he married Caroline, daughter of Charles Allan, of Roxburghshire, having one son and one daughter.

After completing his National Service as 2nd Lieutenant with Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) in Malaya [later Malaysia] in 1950-51 (later serving as a Lieutenant with the London Scottish (Gordon Highlanders) in the Territorial Army, from 1952-55), Ure worked for the publishing company Ernest Benn Limited in 1951, staying in publishing until 1953. He then joined the Foreign (subsequently Diplomatic) Service in 1956 and his diplomatic career included: 3rd Secretary and Private Secretary to the Ambassador, Moscow [Soviet Union], (1957-59); Resident Clerk, Foreign Office, (1960-61); 2nd Secretary, Leopoldville [Congo], (1962-63); FO, (1964-66); 1st Secretary (Commercial), Santiago [Chile], (1967-70); Foreign and Commonwealth Office, (1971-72); Counsellor, and intermittently Chargé d’Affaires, Lisbon [Portugal], (1972-77); Head of South America Department, FCO, (1977-79); Ambassador to Cuba, (1979-81); Assistant Under-Secretary of State, FCO, (1981-84); Ambassador to Brazil, (1984-87), to Sweden, (1987-91). Sir John died on 19 September 2023.