 Thomson was born in Sunderland, County Durham, where his father, Ronald, was assistant curate; the family moved to the Sheffield area two years later (Ronald was curate of Attercliffe until 1957, and then Vicar of Shiregreen; he has since become an honorary canon of Sheffield).David was educated at King Edward VII School, Sheffield, followed by Keble College, Oxford, where he was awarded his Oxford Master of Arts (MA Oxon) and Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) degrees in 1978.He trained for the ministry at Westcott House (1978–1981) and Selwyn College, Cambridge, where he studied theology (Selwyn awarded his Bachelor of Arts {BA} in 1980 and his Cambridge MA in 1984).