John Edwards was born on 25 November 1934, the son of Herbert and Doris Edwards; he was educated at Skinners’ County School, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, and Brasenose College, University of Oxford. In 1959 he married Mary Harris, having one son and one daughter.

After his Military Service (1953-55), Edwards joined the Ministry of Supply in 1958, before transferring to the Colonial Office in 1960. His career thereafter included the following posts: Private Secretary to Hugh Fraser, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Colonies, 1961; Principal: Nature Conservancy, 1962; Ministry of Overseas Development, 1965; First Secretary (Development), and UK Permanent Representative to ECAFE, Bangkok, Thailand, 1968; Assistant Secretary, Ministry of Overseas Development, 1971; Head of East Africa Development Division, Nairobi, Kenya, 1972; Assistant Secretary, Ministry of Overseas Development, 1976; Head of British Development Division in the Caribbean, Barbados, and UK Director, Caribbean Development Bank, 1978; Head, West Indian and Atlantic Department, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, 1981-84; Deputy High Commissioner, Kenya, 1984-88; High Commissioner, Lesotho, 1988-91; High Commissioner, Botswana, 1991-94; Head of UK Delegation, EC Monitoring Mission in former Yugoslavia, 1995-99.