Born in Maidstone, England, the son of the cricketer and writer Tony Pawson, he was educated at Winchester College and Clare College, Cambridge where he received a MA in biochemistry followed by a Ph.D. from King's College London in 1976.
Born in Maidstone, England, the son of the cricketer and writer Tony Pawson, and botanist and high-school teacher Hilarie, he was the eldest of three children. He was educated at Winchester College and Clare College, Cambridge where he received a MA in biochemistry followed by a Ph.D. from King's College London in 1976.