Stephan Spurr was born in Japan and educated in Canada, India and the United Kingdom. He is a graduate of King’s College, Cambridge University from which he holds the degree of Master of Arts.

His professional experience has been primarily centred in Hong Kong, the People's Republic of China and Australia. The early part of his career was with the Hong Kong Land Company and the major part at Swire Properties Limited, where he is both a Board Director & General Manager. His current responsibilities cover the development, marketing, leasing and asset management of Island East, a commercial investment property portfolio of 9.1 million square feet.

Apart from various commercial directorships, he is the Chairman of AFTEC (the Government's Venue Partner at the Sai Wan Ho Civic Centre), Vice-Chairman of Shakespeare4All (whose annual theatre production he has personally directed for the past three years), as well as being a Governor on three other arts organization boards, including that of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra’s whose sub-committee on Audience Development he happens to chair.