Major George Anthony Geoffrey Howard, Baron Howard of Henderskelfe, JP (22 May 1920 – 27 November 1984) was a British landowner, soldier, and peer from the aristocratic

Howard family The Howard family is an English noble family Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy (class), aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below Royal family, royalty. Nobility has of ...

. He inherited

Castle Howard Castle Howard is an English country house in Henderskelfe, North Yorkshire, north of York. A private residence, it has been the home of the Earl of Carlisle, Carlisle branch of the House of Howard, Howard family for more than 300 years. Castle ...

, in Henderskelfe, Yorkshire, which he successfully preserved. Though much of his career was spent devoted to regional affairs, he served as Chairman of the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

from 1980 to 1983.

Early life

Howard was born at 32

Chester Square Chester Square is an elongated residential garden square in London's Belgravia district. It was developed by the Grosvenor family, as were the nearby Belgrave and Eaton Square. The square is named after the city of Chester, the city nearest ...

Belgravia Belgravia () is a district in Central London, covering parts of the areas of the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Belgravia was known as the 'Five Fields' during the Tudor Period, and became a dangerous pla ...

, one of five children of Hon. Geoffrey Howard and Hon. Ethel Christian Methuen. He was a grandson of the 9th Earl of Carlisle and the 3rd Baron Methuen. His elder sister was Anglican theologian Dame Christian Howard (1916–1999). He was educated at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England *Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States *Éton, a commune in the Meuse depa ...

and

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...

. Howard fought in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

with the

Green Howards The Green Howards (Alexandra, Princess of Wales's Own Yorkshire Regiment), frequently known as the Yorkshire Regiment until the 1920s, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, in the King's Division. Raised in 1688, it served under variou ...

, being wounded in Burma. Both his brothers were killed in action in 1944.

Career

In 1952, Howard was appointed to the office of Justice of the Peace for Yorkshire. He was chairman of the

Board of Governors of the BBC The Board of Governors of the BBC was the governing body of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). It consisted of twelve people who together regulated the BBC and represented the interests of the public. It existed from 1927 until it was r ...

from 1980 to 1983 after being a governor for eight years. He was made a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

1 July 1983 with the title Baron Howard of Henderskelfe, of Henderskelfe in the County of

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in Northern England.The Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority areas of City of York, York and North Yorkshire (district), North Yorkshire are in Yorkshire and t ...

Personal life

Howard married Lady Cecilia Blanche Genevieve FitzRoy (born 13 May 1922, died 1974), a daughter of

Alfred FitzRoy, 8th Duke of Grafton Alfred William Maitland FitzRoy, 8th Duke of Grafton (3 March 1850 – 10 January 1930), styled Lord Alfred FitzRoy between 1882 and 1912 and Earl of Euston between 1912 and 1918, was a British peer and soldier. He was the second son of A ...

, on 11 May 1949. They had four sons: * Hon. Henry Francis Geoffrey Howard (17 March 1950 –17 April 2008). He was unmarried. * Hon. Nicholas Paul Geoffrey Howard (born 25 April 1952), married, firstly, in 1983, to Amanda Nimmo, daughter of the actor

Derek Nimmo Derek Robert Nimmo (19 September 1930 – 24 February 1999) was an English character actor, producer and author. He is best remembered for his comedic upper class "silly ass" and clerical roles, including Revd Mervyn Noote in the BBC1 sitcom ...

. They divorced in 1990. He married, secondly, in 1992, to Victoria Barnsley. Both marriages resulted in children, a boy and a girl, respectively. * Hon. Simon Bartholomew Geoffrey Howard (26 January 1956 – 27 February 2022), married, firstly (in 1983; divorced 2000), Annette Smallwood. Married, secondly, in 2001, Rebecca Sieff. Twins, Octavia and Merlin, were born in 2002. * Hon. Anthony Michael Geoffrey Howard (born 18 May 1958), married firstly Linda McGrady in 1985. Two daughters were born of this marriage before they divorced in 1997. Married, secondly, Deborah Ayrton-Grime in 2002. Howard owned

, which was used as the setting of the fictional Bridesmaid estate in the BBC miniseries ''

Brideshead Revisited ''Brideshead Revisited: The Sacred & Profane Memories of Captain Charles Ryder'' is a novel by the English writer Evelyn Waugh, first published in 1945. It follows, from the 1920s to the early 1940s, the life and romances of Charles Ryder, esp ...

'' (1981) and the

2008 film The year 2008 involved many major film events. ''The Dark Knight'' was the year's highest-grossing film, while ''Slumdog Millionaire'' won the Academy Award for Best Picture (out of eight Academy Awards). Evaluation of the year 2008 has been w ...

. He died from cancer.

References

External links

History of BBC Chairmen
1920 births 1984 deaths People educated at Eton College Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford Howard, George Chairmen of the BBC Howard of Henderskelfe Howard, George Howard, George Howard, George

George Howard, Baron Howard of Henderskelfe Major George Anthony Geoffrey Howard, Baron Howard of Henderskelfe, Justice of the peace, JP (22 May 1920 – 27 November 1984) was a British landowner, soldier, and peer from the aristocratic Howard family. He inherited Castle Howard, in Henders ...

Life peers created by Elizabeth II {{Life-peer-stub