Metcalfe attended the Brunts School.
He was also a broadcaster, having worked variously as athletics commentator for British commercial channel Independent Television in the 1970s and 1980s, was head of sport at Channel 4 at its launch in 1983, and he later headed up pan-European sports channel Eurosport. He has worked as an adviser and producer for both the International Olympic Committee and International Association of Athletics Federations, serving on their respective press and broadcast commissions. In 1998, Metcalfe took up a directorship of worldsport.com, working with Allan Callan, on the web-based rights project for the General Assembly of International Sports Federations (GAISF), but the venture was a victim of the dot.com crash and closed in 2000.
Metcalfe lost all of his financial investment in the company.
Metcalfe also advised on London"s bids to stage the track and field world championships and 2012 Olympics. As of 2011 Adrian Metcalfe has retired from public life.