Stephen is MRC Professor of Immunopharmacology at the University of Southampton. After qualifying in Medicine in London, he pursued a research career on the mechanisms of asthma and allergy involving a wide range of different approaches. He has a particular interest in the toxicology of air pollutants and the roles of viruses and allergens as drivers of airway inflammation and remodelling. His work has resulted in over 1000 peer reviewed publications. He was a member of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution, was founder chair of the DH Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollution, Past President of the British Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology and British Thoracic Society and, until 2011, chaired the UK MRC Population and Systems Medicine Board. He currently chairs the MRC Translational Research Group, the ERS Science Board and the Board of the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction in Animals in Research (NC3Rs), and the UK Hazardous Substances Committee. He is a Trustee of the British Lung Foundation and Cancer Research UK. He was the Chair of the recent RCP Working Party on Air Pollution. His contributions have been recognised by a number of awards including The King Faisal International Prize in Medicine, the BSACI William Frankland Medal for Allergy Services, the Paul Ehrlich Award by the EAACI, the American Thoracic Society (ATS) Recognition Award for Scientific Accomplishments and the British Thoracic Society Medal. In 2011 he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours list for services to Clinical Science.