As a child he was unsure what he wanted to do, but then, according to The Independent in 2008, he "... met a friend of the family when I was about 12 who said, if you're a lawyer you spend your life making people unhappy, and if you're a doctor you spend your life trying to make people happy."

Before going to medical school he worked for a year as a volunteer in Kirkby, Liverpool, getting children to paint old people's houses and doing their shopping. The unions threatened to strike, as they were taking away work, but "... work that they weren't doing anyway ..."

Coleman qualified as a doctor in 1970 and has worked both in hospitals and as a GP. He is still registered and licensed to practice as a GP principal. He has founded and organised many campaigns concerning iatrogenesis, drug addictions and the abuse of animals and has given evidence to committees at the House of Commons and the House of Lords on vivisection. Dr Coleman's campaigns have often proved successful. For example, after a 15 year campaign (which started in 1973) he eventually persuaded the British Government to introduce stricter controls governing the prescribing of benzodiazepine tranquillisers. 'Dr Vernon Coleman's articles, to which I refer with approval, raised concern about these important matters,' said Edwina Currie, Parliamentary Secretary for health in the House of Commons in 1988.

Writing and Media appearances

His first books included The Medicine Men (1975), and Paper Doctors (1976). Bodypower came in 1983, and has been reprinted a number of times. Alice's Diary (1989) and Alice's Adventures (1992) concern Alice (1983—1992) and her half sister Thomasina (1983—2000), real cats who shared their lives with Vernon Coleman. How to Stop Your Doctor Killing You came out in 1996, and then again in 2003. After publishers refused to publish Alice's Diary and certain others of his books, he decided to begin self publishing.

He has worked as a columnist for numerous national newspapers including The Sun, The Daily Star, The Sunday Express and The Sunday People, and has written columns for over 50 regional newspapers. His columns and articles have appeared in newspapers and magazines around the world. He has contributed articles to hundreds of other publications including The Sunday Times, Observer, Guardian, Daily Telegraph, Sunday Telegraph, Daily Express, Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror, Punch, Woman, Womans Own, The Lady, Spectator and the British Medical Journal. He was the founding editor of the British Clinical Journal.

He has presented numerous programmes on television and radio and was the original breakfast television doctor. He was television's first agony uncle (on The Afternoon Show). He has presented three TV series based on his bestselling book Bodypower.

Vernon Coleman is married to Donna Antoinette Coleman (born 1972), whom he calls "the Welsh Princess". She is co-author with him of How To Conquer Health Problems Between Ages 50 and 120 (2003), and Health Secrets Doctors Share With Their Families (2005).