The son of
Brigadier A. W. S. Mallaby CIE OBE and Margaret Catherine Mallaby (née Jones), he was educated at
Eton College and studied Modern Languages and History at
King's College, Cambridge. In 1971 he studied at
Harvard Business School. After leaving university he entered
Her Majesty's Diplomatic Service in 1959. Mallaby was
British Ambassador to West Germany 1988-1992,
British Ambassador to France 1993-1996 and Managing Director of
UBS Investment Bank. Mallaby was chairman of
Somerset House Trust from 2002–2006, and trustee of the
Tate Gallery Group 1996-2002. He was also as of 2011 a trustee director and deputy-chairman of
Reuters, and since 2001 has been the chairman of
EORTC. Mallaby was appointed Companion of the
Order of St Michael and St George in 1982, Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1986, Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1996 and Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order in 1992. In an interview in 2009, when asked how bad the relationship between the
prime minister of the United Kingdom Margaret Thatcher and
Chancellor of Germany Helmut Kohl was, Mallaby replied, "Very bad. It was about personal chemistry. They didn't naturally enjoy each other's company. Mrs Thatcher had easier relationships with
Reagan or
Gorbachev." Mallaby initiated the
Entente Cordiale Scholarship scheme, a prestigious Franco-British scholarship programme. ==Personal life==