Dirk Bogarde by John Coldstream
As an actor Dirk Bogarde was a Rank contract artist and matinee idol (films such as Doctor in the House) who became a giant of the intellectual cinema, working with directors such as Joseph Losey (The Servant, Accident), Lucino Visconti (The Damned, Death in Venice) and Alain Resnais (Providence). Fiercely protective of his privacy, and that of his partner of 40 years, he left England in the 1960s to live on the Continent, where he carved a second career for himself as a bestselling autobiographer beginning with A Postillion Struck by Lightning (1977) and as a successful novelist. In all he had 15 books to his credit, including A Particular Friendship (1989), which showed him as a copious and brilliant writer of letters. Although Bogarde and his partner destroyed many of his papers, his family has made available his personal archive to John Coldstream, former Literary Editor of the Daily Telegraph, who knew him well in his last years and edited his final book, For the Time Being (1998). Coldstream has also made many discoveries all over the world following diligent research. The biography will be published to coincide with the fifth anniversary of Bogardes death.
'Biographies only tend to be definitive until the next one comes along, but there's no danger of Coldstream's erudite, moving analysis ever being superseded' - Christopher Fowler THE INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY 'This stupendous biography. Its masterful justification of his many sides make it possible for us still to learn from him in death.' - John de Falbe THE DAILY TELEGRAPH 'this extremely interesting life of a determined stage actor, reluctant film star, gay icon and wicked charmer has been beautifully documented, with fairness, enthusiasm and quite exceptional diligence.' - Michael Coveney THE GUARDIAN 'a monumental piece of work...fascinating throughout its more than 600 extremely well-written pages.' - Charles Osborne THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH 'I have seldom read a biopgraphy as intelligent, urbane and judicious as this... Definitive and magnificent.' - Roger Lewis SUNDAY EXPRESS 'this meticulous biography.' - Christie Hickman THE NEW STATESMAN 'Coldstream is the most generous of biographers... Coldstream's biography will tell you all you want to know... about this very interesting actor and very tricky human being.' - Craig Brown THE MAIL ON SUNDAY 'a scrupulous and sober portrait of a deeply troubled man.' - Michael Arditti THE INDEPENDENT 'his compendious and well-written biography...his research on his life is exhaustive.' - George Perry THE SUNDAY TIMES 'With this superb biography John Coldstream has pulled off a remarkable feat' - Keith Baxter THE SPECTATOR 'very readable new biography' - Gilbert Adair EVENING STANDARD 'this is a big fat biography to treasure: a subtle take on a genuinely interesting, downright elusive, easily caricatured actor-writer-artist.' - Michael Pye THE SCOTSMAN 'an absorbing look at a complex and absorbing character who, ironically, said that when he died, 'Just forget me.' - Gail Walker THE BELFAST TELEGRAPH 'gripping' - Andrew Lycett LITERARY REVIEW 'all but flawless biography.' - Hugh Leonard THE IRISH TIMES 'Coldstream has been thorough and conscientious in his research' - Frank McLynn THE HERALD 'this massively researched biography... Bogarde's double life is sensitively handled as well as the actor's late flowering into an autobiographer and novelist of great skill.' - Quentin Falk ACADEMY MAGAZINE 'This helps make the biography more fascinating, not simply as a portrait of a movie actor, his glamorous friends, work and family but as a social history... it was a rich life and once you start the journey through it you will enjoy and relish the experience.' - Brian Baxter THE VETRAN
John Coldstream was on the staff of the Daily Telegraph for 25 years, starting on the 'Peterborough' column, then as deputy literary editor, before becoming Literary Editor in 1991. He remains 'loosely attached' to the Telegraph, but is working full-time on the Bogarde biography.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780297607304 |
| ISBN 10 | 0297607308 |
| Title | Dirk Bogarde |
| Author | John Coldstream |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Orion Publishing Co |
| Year published | 2004-09-13 |
| Number of pages | 640 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |