He was educated at St. George's School in Harpenden, and at Wadham College, Oxford, where he associated with W. H. Auden, Cecil Day-Lewis, and Stephen Spender, and published in Oxford Poetry.
Han utbildades på St George School i Harpenden, och vid Wadham College, Oxford, där han gick samman med W. H. Auden, Cecil Day-Lewis, och Stephen Spender och publicerade i Oxford Poetry.