Film Director
High Sheriff
St Nicholas Church
Netherwylde Equestrian
Writer
Howard received an MBE in the 2017 New Years Honours List. He is a Deputy Lieutenant of Hertfordshire, HonDArt, and a member of the University of Hertfordshire Court.
Livery Company: Barber Surgeons. Club: Groucho.
Having grown up in Knebworth, Hertfordshire, he was educated at Ardingly College in Sussex and Leeds University where he studied Psychology and Sociology. In 1967 he entered the film industry as a tea boy graduating to assistant director on feature films before becoming a director in 1977. His career directing commercials spanned over 30 years. He has also made several short films for organisations such as the National Hospital and directed a 90 minute documentary entitled Inside Eton.
To date, 6000 copies of A County at War, Life on the Home Front in Hertfordshire have been distributed to schools, clubs and museums throughout the county.
He lives with his wife Sheila at Netherwylde Farm in Hertfordshire which has been their home for over 30 years and where they also run a livery yard, Netherwylde Equestrian. They have four sons, Thomas Guard and his brother Charles Guard started their directing career making short films at Cambridge, Ted Guard trained under Pam Power at the Film Editors and now lives in New York. He edited Alejandro Landes’s Monos which won the Special Jury Award at Sundance 2019. Bertie Guard worked for David Heyman for four years, gained an MBA at Insead, and now works in Tech.
In 1990 Howard’s family bought and restored a 12th Century church, St Nicholas at Great Munden, where they present operas, plays, concerts and art exhibitions. The church is available for use by the parish and aspires to hold occasional services. He served as High Sheriff of Hertfordshire in 2007/2008, Chairman of the St Albans Cathedral Fabric Trust from 2006-2013 and was appointed DL in 2009.