Patrick Darby was born in 1952 and educated at Dulwich College and St John’s College Oxford, where he scraped a B.A. degree in Jurisprudence. Until he retired in 2015, Patrick was a Solicitor (specialising in probate and trust work), initially in private practice, and for the last twenty years of his career working successively for two national charities as their Legacies Administration Manager.

A member of the British Association for Local History (‘BALH”), until 2020 Patrick spent most of his life in the Dulwich area, and contributed to many of the Dulwich Society’s publications. He was a member of the Dulwich Society Local History Group for nearly fifty years, and the group's Chairman in the 1980s. He and his partner David now live in Braintree, Essex.

Should you wish to contact Patrick with any enquiries or comments, his e-mail address is MDH@hitherwood.co.uk.