Short Walk from Harrods

First published in 1993, this is volume six of Dirk Bogarde's best-selling memoirs. Forced into returning to London because of his manager and his partner's rapidly deteriorating health, Bogarde must re-adapt to life in the West London neighbourhoods that groomed him as an aspiring young actor. But with his fame fading and his descent into old age, the entire process becomes rather difficult to endure. He stalks the streets like an 'apologetic turtle' and avoids society, announcing with his effortless wit that he shall, from then on, only do 'matinees' because he is too tired to go out in the evenings. Although this memoir finds Bogarde at his most vulnerable, he retains the lucidity and charm that makes his writing so enjoyable. As ever, he expresses a deep sentimentality that ensures no detail goes unnoticed or unfelt.