The tremendously dishy life of one of the most admired and lively literary figures today
Novelist, playwright, and barrister Sir John Mortimer has led an extraordinarily rich and daring life, privately and professionally, much of it in the public eye. His own writings, from the play A Voyage Round My Father to his wildly popular books in the Rumpole series, to his three acclaimed volumes of autobiography, and his screenplay for Brideshead Revisited, have rewarded readers and viewers with insight and humor.
Now, for the first time, biographer Valerie Grove has been given full access to Mortimer. A Voyage Round John Mortimer traces Mortimer’s legal and literary career, from his first attempts at writing novels and plays, and the early help he offered his barrister father, through his great triumphs in court, to the creation of Horace Rumpole, one of the most popular characters in contemporary fiction and television. Mortimer’s personal life—including his marriages to Penelope Mortimer and to Penny II, and his many affairs—is as colorful as any fiction he’s written. Correcting the many errors and half-truths found in a previous biography by Graham Lord, Valerie Grove’s book is essential reading for Mortimer’s many fans.
Novelist, playwright, and barrister Sir John Mortimer has led an extraordinarily rich and daring life, privately and professionally, much of it in the public eye. His own writings, from the play A Voyage Round My Father to his wildly popular books in the Rumpole series, to his three acclaimed volumes of autobiography, and his screenplay for Brideshead Revisited, have rewarded readers and viewers with insight and humor.
Now, for the first time, biographer Valerie Grove has been given full access to Mortimer. A Voyage Round John Mortimer traces Mortimer’s legal and literary career, from his first attempts at writing novels and plays, and the early help he offered his barrister father, through his great triumphs in court, to the creation of Horace Rumpole, one of the most popular characters in contemporary fiction and television. Mortimer’s personal life—including his marriages to Penelope Mortimer and to Penny II, and his many affairs—is as colorful as any fiction he’s written. Correcting the many errors and half-truths found in a previous biography by Graham Lord, Valerie Grove’s book is essential reading for Mortimer’s many fans.
