After a Bachelor of Science at Manchester University and PhD at George’s London I moved to the University of Washington for postdoctoral research in biophysics before returning to London in 1990 and then Leeds in 1992 as a Wellcome Trust Career Development Fellow and Lecturer in 1993. Since 2000 I have been Professor at the University of Leeds, which is one of the largest Russell Group universities in the UK. My aims are to understand cellular cation entry and mechanical force sensing in cardiovascular and metabolic biology, generate new pharmacology to enable therapeutic drug discovery, cultivate interdisciplinary science including basic-clinical science partnerships for translational impact, and support the development of productive academic careers. I am a Wellcome Trust Investigator who also holds a British Heart Foundation (BHF) Programme Grant and portfolio of other research grants supporting a group of 12-15 investigators. I have 25 years of experience as a university leader, including 8 years as Head of School / Department. In 2008 I founded a large cross-faculty Multidisciplinary Cardiovascular Research Centre (MCRC) that led to an approximate doubling of cardiovascular research activity at Leeds, the Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine (LICAMM) comprising over 200 staff and 100 PhD students, and the UK’s first Doctoral Training Programme in Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes, which has been BHF-funded since 2017 and was successfully renewal in 2020 until 2028. I was director of LICAMM until 2020 and continue to direct both the MCRC and PhD programme. I have published 202 articles, delivered 177 invited lectures worldwide and fostered the careers of over 30 scientists in the academic and industrial sectors. I was elected to Fellowship of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2013 and became Academy of Medical Sciences Regional in Champion in 2021.