John Messingham was born in Hampton, Middlesex, England. After finishing school he joined the British Army and served as an Infantryman and later as a radio operator within the Battalion Mortar Platoon. After his time in the military, he trained as a computer programmer and endured a long career in IT.

At the beginning of 2018, he took the decision to take a different direction in life and now works as a photographer and author, sometimes drawing on his military and IT backgrounds. He has written and published short stories including The Watchers, Attack on the Clyde, The Bullring Bombing and The Water Thieves.