---
name: "John Hough"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/john-hough"
roles: ["Director"]
born: "21 November 1941"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 2
average_fi1m_score: 80
average_as: "director"
average_over: 2
updated: "2026-09-18T00:47:38.521303+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# John Hough

Director. Born 21 November 1941 in London, England, UK.

## Details

- **Work:** Director
- **Born:** 21 November 1941, London, England, UK
- **Active:** 1961–1985
- **Also known as:** Johnny Hough, 约翰·格兰
- **Frequently works with:** [Robert Tronson](https://film.one/person/robert-tronson.md), [Roger Marshall](https://film.one/person/roger-marshall.md)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 80, as director, over 2 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1960s 83 (1), 1980s 76 (1)
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hough_(director), https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q946315, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0396421/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/19032

## Streaming the US now

- **Peacock:** [*The Avengers*](https://film.one/tv/the-avengers-1961.md) (83)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on John Hough

> John Hough is a capable director of suspense and action, worth seeking out selectively. We value his feel for pursuits and haunted-house tension, though the later horror work makes a poor case for following him indiscriminately.

In *Dempsey and Makepeace* (1985), the friction between Michael Brandon and Glynis Barber's police partners is predictable, but their timing keeps it funny. We laughed at their sparring; the crime-solving seldom surprised us. Hough's directing work includes the series, although the actors are the chief reason we recommend it. His wider career gives us firmer evidence of his strengths as a director, particularly when there is a pursuit to stage or a supernatural threat to establish.

His second-unit work on *The Baron*, *The Avengers* and *The Champions* helps explain his confidence with pursuits. *Twins of Evil* (1971) established him in Hammer horror, while *The Legend of Hell House* (1973) made good use of his ability to build haunted-house tension. His use of composition and camera angles to distinguish heroes from villains suggests a director concerned with making a scene legible. We value that care, particularly in suspense films, where understanding the space can make the threat more immediate.

In *Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry* (1974), the car chases benefit from keeping us invested in the people involved. *Escape to Witch Mountain* (1975) applies his taste for the supernatural to a solid family adventure for Disney, followed by *Return from Witch Mountain* (1978). Moving between those audiences was a useful skill, and there is no reason to mark him down for it. The better question is how well he judges the amount of menace each kind of film can take.

*The Watcher in the Woods* (1980) is less assured in balancing eerie material with family expectations, while *Howling IV: The Original Nightmare* (1988) offers little encouragement to explore the later horror work. There is enough unevenness here to make a complete survey feel unnecessary. Choose *Dempsey and Makepeace* for Brandon and Barber's timing; anyone hoping to be baffled by the investigations should look elsewhere.

## Biography

John Hough (born 21 November 1941) is a British film and television director. He began his career in the 1960s working in television production in London, initially as a second unit director on series including *The Baron*, *The Avengers* and *The Champions*. He directed his first episodes of *The Avengers* in 1968.

Hough's feature films include *Twins of Evil* (1971), *The Legend of Hell House* (1973), *Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry* (1974), *Escape to Witch Mountain* (1975), *Return from Witch Mountain* (1978) and *The Watcher in the Woods* (1980). He has also directed television episodes and films, including one episode of *Dempsey and Makepeace* (1985).

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (2)

- *Dempsey and Makepeace* (1985), Fi1m 76, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/dempsey-and-makepeace.md)
- *The Avengers* (1961), Fi1m 83, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/the-avengers-1961.md)

## Complete filmography (33)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *The Human Race* (2013), Producer, Executive Producer
- *Bad Karma* (2002), Director
- *The Backyard* (2002), Executive Producer
- *Something to Believe In* (1998), Director, Writer, Producer
- *Duel of Hearts* (1992), Director, Producer
- *A Ghost in Monte Carlo* (1990), Producer, Director
- *The Lady and the Highwayman* (1988), Director, Producer
- *Howling IV: The Original Nightmare* (1988), Director
- *A Hazard of Hearts* (1987), Director
- *American Gothic* (1987), Director
- *Biggles* (1986), Director
- *Black Arrow* (1985), Director
- *Dempsey and Makepeace* (1985), series, Director — Fi1m 76, [page](https://film.one/tv/dempsey-and-makepeace.md)
- *Czech Mate* (1984), Director
- *Black Carrion* (1984), Director
- *A Distant Scream* (1984), Director, Associate Producer
- *Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense* (1984), series, Producer, Director
- *Triumphs of a Man Called Horse* (1983), Director
- *Incubus* (1982), Director
- *The Watcher in the Woods* (1980), Director
- *Brass Target* (1978), Director
- *Return from Witch Mountain* (1978), Director
- *The New Avengers* (1976), series, Director
- *Escape to Witch Mountain* (1975), Director
- *Dirty Mary Crazy Larry* (1974), Director
- *The Zoo Gang* (1974), series, Director
- *The Legend of Hell House* (1973), Director
- *Wolfshead: The Legend of Robin Hood* (1973), Director
- *Treasure Island* (1972), Director
- *The Protectors* (1972), series, Director
- *Twins of Evil* (1971), Director
- *Eyewitness* (1970), Director
- *The Avengers* (1961), series, Director — Fi1m 83, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-avengers-1961.md)

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© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/john-hough