[2] Farr was brought up in Surrey and educated in Guildford and the University of Cambridge (English Literature double first).
[citation needed] Farr began directing theatre at University and won the Guardian Student Drama Award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 1991 with Slight Possession starring Rachel Weisz.
His professional directorial debut came at The Gate Theatre, Notting Hill in 1995 (aged 25)[3] under Stephen Daldry.
In 2009, he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company as Associate Director.
Farr's adaptation of John le Carré's novel The Night Manager was aired in 2016 on BBC1.