 He was named after his grandfather, another Charles Henry Gimingham, an eminent British entomologist who was President of the Association of Applied Biologists.Gimingham was educated at Gresham's School, Holt, and Emmanuel College, Cambridge, where he was an open Scholar and graduated BA in 1944, then at Aberdeen University, graduating Doctor of Philosophy.Gimingham began his career as a Research Assistant, first at Imperial College, London from 1944–1945, then at the University of Aberdeen from 1946–1948.