 Ross Parker was born in Peterborough in 1984 to Davinia and Tony Parker. His mother worked as a waitress and his father ran a car bodywork repair business; he was one of two children. Parker was an avid football player and, having completed a GNVQ in business studies at Jack Hunt School, hoped to join the police force when he was 18. He was nicknamed "Half-Pint" owing to his 5 feet 5 inch height and had twice broken his leg previously. Parker lived in the Westwood area of the city and worked part-time as bar support at The Solstice, a local public house where he had met his girlfriend Nicola Toms.
