Downer was born in
Adelaide as a member of the influential
Downer family. His father,
Sir John Downer, was a
Premier of South Australia and a member of the
Australian Senate and was 66-years old at the time of his birth; he died when Alick was aged five. His mother was Una Russell, daughter of
Henry Chamberlain Russell, who remarried when Alick was eight, to D’Arcy Wentworth Addison. Sir Alick's son,
Alexander Downer, also a Liberal politician, was Leader of the Opposition in 1994–95 and Foreign Minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, before becoming
Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom from 2014 to 2018, five decades after Alick held the same role. He was educated at
Geelong Grammar School and at the
University of Oxford, where he graduated in economics and political science. He was the godfather of
Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer, brother of
Diana, Princess of Wales. The Earl's godmother was
Queen Elizabeth II. After graduating from Oxford in 1932 he read law in London, and in 1934 he was admitted to the bar at
Inner Temple. Returning to Adelaide, he joined the South Australian Bar in 1935. He practised as a barrister until joining the
Australian Army in 1940. He served in
Malaya and was a prisoner-of-war for three years, where he set up a camp library and gave lessons to other prisoners. He was promoted to
sergeant due to these efforts, but the promotion was not recognised upon his release. His book
Six prime ministers (
Robert Menzies,
John Gorton,
Harold Holt,
Harold Wilson,
Edward Heath,
Basil Brooke, 1st Viscount Brookeborough) was published in 1982. ==Political career==