Christopher Sean Lowe was born on October 4th in Blackpool, Lancashire. In 1976, Chris played trombone in a seven piece dance band wittily named One Under The Eight, who played old-time popular favourites like "Hello Dolly", "La Bamba", and "Moon River".

In 1978, Chris went to Liverpool University to study architecture. During 1981 -1982 he spent a year gaining practical experience in a London architectural practice, designing a staircase in an industrial development in Milton Keynes. "It's not a remarkable staircase", he commented when he visited it in 1988, "It's just a functional staircase".

On August 19th 1981, Neil and Chris met by chance in an electronics shop on the Kings Road. Realizing they had a common interest in dance music, they began to write together. To begin with they called themselves West End; later they came up with the name Pet Shop Boys, a name derived from some friends who worked in a pet shop in Ealing.