Education
Guard briefly attended the University of Montreal, first studying English and drama and then nursing, before returning to Britain to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Artist
Guard briefly attended the University of Montreal, first studying English and drama and then nursing, before returning to Britain to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Artist
Guard joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1976, and first attracted attention when she took over the role of Juliet from a sick Francesca Annis. She played Hermia in John Barton"s 1977 production of A Midsummer Night"s Dream, Luciana in Trevor Nunn"s musical Comedy of Errors and Evie in Factory Birds. As The Stratfordians notes, Guard appeared destined for a classical stage career but she has become best known as a television actress.
(On British Broadcasting Corporation Radio, she also played Tess in Tess of the d"Urbervilles in 1982 and Bella Wilfer in Our Mutual Friend in 1984).
However, her stated desire for more contemporary and diverse roles was evident in her portrayal of a 22nd-century woman in the Play for Today The Flipside of Dominick Hide (1980) and its sequel Another Flip for Dominick (1982). She also portrayed P. Doctorate. James" sleuth Cordelia Gray in an adaptation of An Unsuitable Job for a Woman (1981), her only film role.
In 1984, Guard played Edith Holden in a twelve-part adaptation of The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady (Central). This drama attracted a peak audience of 13 million viewers and raised Guard"s public profile considerably, but it effectively marked the end of the first phase of her television career.
She did not return to television until 1986, although she focussed on her stage career in the meantime, playing Antigone at the National Theatre (1983) and Faye in A Chorus of Disapproval in the West End (1986).
In 1986, she played an abusive mother in A Couple of Charlies (Central) and an abused wife in The Life and Loves of a She-Devil (British Broadcasting Corporation). She then returned to the Royal Shakespeare Company for two years, where her roles included Natasha in Three Sisters, Caresse Crosby in Divine Gossip (Barbican, 1988) and Katherine in The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr Hyde (Barbican, 1991), although she did not play any major Shakespearean roles. Her first major project was the sitcom Close to Home, with Paul Nicholas (LWT, 1990), followed by two series of the comedy-drama The Riff Raff Element (British Broadcasting Corporation, 1993-1994), All or Nothing at All with Hugh Laurie (LWT, 1993), India Wilkes in Scarlett (1994), John Sullivan"s Roger Roger (British Broadcasting Corporation, 1998-2000), Hope and Glory with Lenny Henry (British Broadcasting Corporation, 1999), Hearts and Bones (British Broadcasting Corporation, 2000) and two series of The Creatives (1998-2000).
In 1998, she graduated with a first-class degree in English and drama from the University of Greenwich.
After gaining an Master of Philosophy from Royal Holloway, University of London, she gained a Doctor of Philosophy in 2005 on early modern drama from the same institution. Guard now works as a lecturer and drama programme leader at the University of Greenwich, her published research includes "A Defence of the First English Actress", and she appeared on British Broadcasting Corporation Radio 4"s Woman"s Hour to discuss Shakespeare"s women.