John Howard Davies

John Howard Davies (9 March 1939 – 22 August 2011) was a prominent British television director, producer, and former child actor, born in Paddington, London. He hailed from a creative background, being the son of scriptwriter Jack Davies. As a child actor, Davies earned acclaim for his role as Oliver Twist in David Lean's classic film (1948), and he also appeared in notable works such as The Rocking Horse Winner (1949), Tom Brown's Schooldays (1951), and the television series William Tell (1958).

After completing his education at Haileybury and studying in Grenoble, Davies served in the Royal Navy before briefly working in finance. He later trained as a carpet salesman but chose to travel instead. His journey took him to Australia, where he returned to acting and met his future wife, Leonie, during a production of The Sound of Music. Upon returning to the UK, he initially worked in industrial oil sales before transitioning to television as a production assistant at the BBC in late 1968.

Davies achieved significant success as a director and producer of iconic British sitcoms, including Fawlty Towers (series 1), The Goodies, and Mr. Bean. He also contributed to The Vicar of Dibley and was instrumental in producing the early episodes of Monty Python's Flying Circus. Between 1977 and 1982, he served as the BBC's Head of Comedy and later took on leadership roles at EMI Television Productions and Thames Television, where he controversially decided not to renew Benny Hill's contract after two decades.