John was born at a very young age with his umbilical cord wrapped around his neck. At first, it appeared that no lasting damage had been done, but as he grew, it became clear that his sense of humour had been damaged irreparably.

John studied mathematics at Oxford University, where he also trained as a teacher. Despite this, he still refers to himself in the third person. Whilst there, he performed stand-up comedy as part of the Oxford Revue. Making audiences laugh was too easy, so he progressed to greater challenges: making maths interesting and making boring actuaries laugh.

John lives with his family near Oxford, England, where daily he wonders how his wife still finds the same jokes funny after more than 20 years of marriage.