Fleur Houston is a minister of the United Reformed Church who has served congregations in Sheffield and Blackbird Leys, while international responsibilities have taken her to Africa and to many parts of Europe. She has published articles, chiefly on John Wood Oman and a book on the Bible, refugees and asylum. Born in Aberdeenshire, a graduate of the universities of Aberdeen, Oxford, Cambridge, and a mother of four daughters, she lives with her husband, Walter, in a "weaver's garret" in Macclesfield.