Obtained BSc (Hons), specialising in Bacteriology, at University of Birmingham in 1977. Entered the pharmaceutical/agrochemical industry as Development Microbiologist with Cyanamid, moved to University of Newcastle upon Tyne, obtained Doctorate in 1982, financed by ICI studying GI tract microbiology.
First post-doctorate position with Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland, where continued interests in anaerobic microbiology, subsequently appointed Lecturer, Queens University of Belfast. October 1984 joined Glaxo group of companies and worked firstly in veterinary medicine as Head of Microbiology, Glaxo Animal Health and subsequently as Senior Research Leader working on the development of novel antimicrobials in human medicine.
Joined Don Whitley Scientific Limited in April 1990, as Research Director with responsibility for all technical aspects of the Company's international business in microbiology, majority of time being spent directing the Contract Research side of the business working primarily with the pharmaceutical industry.
In January 1999 MB Consult Limited was formed to handle increasing demand for consultancy work. More than fifty publications and articles in addition to writing specialist chapters in microbiology textbooks. Held appointment as Honorary Visiting Senior Lecturer in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Bradford.
Currently Professor in Applied Microbiology within the School of Life Sciences, University of Bradford. Past President of the Society for Applied Microbiology. Acts as a consultant to a number of the multinational pharmaceutical companies, spending a significant proportion of his time in the USA. Represented IFAH as part of the European VICH delegation on the Microbial Safety Task Force. Recent responsibility for the now completed Science Communications Work Package in the EC Framework Six funded Network of Excellence, MED-VET-NET, addressing zoonotic disease across Europe. Appointed in January 2006 as Voting Member of the Subcommittee on Veterinary Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing and recently made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine.
