Brown was born in 1951 and went toschool in Kirkcaldy. He studied at Edinburgh University from the age of 16 and graduated with Master of Arts at 19 with 1st Class Honours, later gaining a Doctorate of Philosophy. From 1976 to 1980, he lectured at Edinburgh University and then Glasgow College of Technology, before taking up a post at Scottish TV. From 1983-1984 he was Chair of the Labour Party Scottish Council and in May 1983 became MP for Dunfermline East. He was Opposition spokesperson on Treasury and Economic Affairs (Shadow Chancellor) from 1992. With the election of the Labour government in May 1997, Gordon Brown became Chancellor of the Exchequer, and held the post for ten years. Following the resignation of Tony Blair, he became Prime Minister in June 2007. He is married to Sarah Macaulay and they have two sons.