Adrian Cook was born in Grantham in Lincolnshire on 28 October 1959, the son of Vernon Cook and Rita Mavis Cook (née Hardacre) and the brother of Julian and Caroline. His mother, Rita, died in October 1970 and his father remarried to Maureen Cook (formerly Warren).

Adrian joined the Royal Navy, trained as Marine Engineering Artificer, and joined the Submarine Service. He was already a qualified submariner when he was married to Miss Julie Brett in the Church of St John in Grantham on 8 April 1983. By August 1991 he had been promoted and was serving as a Charge Chief Marine Engineering Artificer in HMS DEFIANCE (Second Submarine Squadron) at Devonport.

Adrian Cook of 59, Pattinson Drive, Mainstone, Plymouth, Devon is reported to have died at his home on 26 May 1991 having committed suicide. Although he had not left a note of his intentions the coroner recorded an Open Verdict. He was the husband of Julie Cook (née Brett) and the father of daughters Catherine and Caroline Cook. The funeral took place in the Efford Crematorium in Plymouth on 30 June 1991. Sadly, his half-brother, Keith (Ted) Warren, was killed in a motorcycle accident in July 1991.