Born in 1965 this son of a preacher man grew up in a leafy North London suburb. Although his parents ran a strict household they were still musical and creative and would take their son to the Ballet and Opera from a very early age and afterwards he would draw the costumes he had seen. By the age of 15 he had taught himself to make clothes and started taking commissions from his neighbours and friends.

Cunningham states that he would have loved to have gone to art school but it simply was not an option as his family were literally preparing for the end of the world and they saw art school as a major distraction. Instead, he enrolled at a North London Technical College where he learned how to cut his own patterns and all the essential skills required to lift his designs off the pages of his sketch pad into reality.

After formal training and a brief spell designing and pattern cutting for a mass-market manufacturer he became self employed, taking further private commissions. He made clothes for his wealthy friends, freelanced for Hasbro making miniature clothes for Sindy Doll and then one day following a friend's suggestion he turned up at Liberty with a stack of wedding dresses under his arm and promptly sold the lot. Seeing them displayed in their Regent Street windows Neil Cunningham realised he had at last found a niche market.

In 1992 Cunningham launched his debut collection for brides featuring a fresh take on the empire line and glamorous 50's shapes. In the post Royal Wedding world of meringue wedding dresses it was a breath of fresh air and he was named 'New Designer of the Year' at the Condé Nast British Bridal Awards. His collection immediately attracted international stockists. Five more awards followed before demand for couture prompted the move to his West End salon.

In January 1995 Neil Cunningham opened the doors to his Sackville Street shop which enabled him to also develop his evening wear collections. He created couture gowns for the Royal Ballet's Darcey Bussell including her wedding dress commission in 1996. Several high-profile weddings followed suit leading to National Press front-page coverage and he has been dubbed 'genius of the bridal gown'.

Over the years he has built up an eclectic client list from the worlds of stage, screen and politics. He maintains close links with the ballet and has designed costumes for the Ballet Boyz Billy Trevitt and Michael Nunn's highly acclaimed dance company George Piper Dances.

In 2006 Neil closed his West End shop to focus on styling and photography projects. He says that portrait photography, in particular, has become a natural development of his endeavours to transform his clients - capturing the transformation as a moment in time - being he says, the ultimate satisfaction. He does still maintain an ongoing relationship with his established clients while any new commissions are considered via personal recommendation only.