Peter Andrews has always had a keen interest in fossils, and an encounter with Dr L. S. B. Leakey while working in the Kenya Forestry Department encouraged him to make the move to anthropology. He has spent much of his career at the Natural History Museum, London, where he was Head of Human Origins until his retirement in 2000. Since then he has been curator of Blandford Museum while retaining an Emeritus Research Associate position at the Natural History Museum along with honorary professorships at University College London and the University of York. He has published ten books, two with Chris Stringer, and nearly 200 articles in the scientific and popular press.