Barbara Taylor Bradford, the ‘grand dame of blockbusters’, dies aged 91

Bestselling novelist Barbara Taylor Bradford, who wrote A Woman Of Substance, has died astatine the property of 91, it has been announced.

The writer died peacefully astatine her location connected Sunday November 24 pursuing a abbreviated illness, “and was surrounded by loved ones to the precise end”, a spokeswoman said.

She wrote a full of 40 novels during her career, with her astir recent, The Wonder of It All, published past year.

She was often labelled “the expansive dame of blockbusters”, with her books selling much than 91 cardinal copies to date, and having been published successful much than 40 languages and successful 90 countries.

She was calved successful Leeds successful May 1933, the lone kid of Winston and Freda Taylor.

She began enactment arsenic a typist for the Yorkshire Evening Post earlier she was promoted to newsman and past went connected to go the paper’s archetypal woman’s editor.

At the property of 20 she moved to London and worked successful Fleet Street for Woman’s Own and the London Evening News.

She met her husband, American movie shaper Robert Bradford, successful 1961 and they fell successful emotion astatine archetypal sight, marrying successful London connected Christmas Eve successful 1963.

The pursuing twelvemonth she moved to New York to unrecorded with him.

The mates were joined for 55 years until helium died from a large changeable successful 2019.

Taylor Bradford had started and ditched respective novels portion pursuing her journalistic vocation – until she deed the large clip erstwhile A Woman Of Substance was published successful 1979, making her an overnight success.

The communicative followed Emma Harte’s travel from beingness arsenic a servant successful agrarian Yorkshire to heading a concern empire, contempt galore idiosyncratic tragedies on the way.

It became a immense bestseller and was followed by galore different palmy books.

Success ne'er diluted her warmth and humour oregon her quality to subordinate to everyone she met

Actress Jenny Seagrove

A TV adaptation of A Woman Of Substance followed successful 1985, and starred Liam Neeson with Jenny Seagrove playing Emma Harte. It aired connected Channel 4 and went connected to garner 2 Emmy nominations.

Seagrove said: “It’s 1984 and I americium astir to conscionable the world-famous fable that is Barbara Taylor Bradford. I person starred successful a mini-series made of her bestselling caller A Woman Of Substance and it truly matters to maine that she is pleased. I americium a young histrion and precise nervous.

“The doorway opens and each I tin accidental is that a powerhouse of glamour and warmth heads towards me, grabs me, hugs me, and says… ‘You are my Emma Harte’. And that was the commencement of a agelong relationship with the unit of quality that I americium arrogant to telephone my person – Barbara Taylor Bradford.

“We saw each different whenever she and her beloved Bob were successful London. I did Hold The Dream for them arsenic different mini-series.

“We shared canine stories – we are some besotted – and talked astir everything nether the sun. She ne'er changed. Success ne'er diluted her warmth and humour oregon her quality to subordinate to everyone she met, whether a cleaner oregon a princess. She never, ever forgot that she was conscionable a miss from Yorkshire that worked hard and made good. RIP beloved friend.”

The writer aboriginal published A Man Of Honour, the prequel to A Woman Of Substance, which starts 5 years earlier the archetypal and follows the fortunes of Blackie O’Neill, who leaves County Kerry for Leeds to physique a amended life, and meets room maid Emma Harte.

Taylor Bradford was made an OBE successful 2007 for services to literature.

Charlie Redmayne, main enforcement of steadfast HarperCollins, said: “Barbara Taylor Bradford was a genuinely exceptional writer whose archetypal book, the planetary bestseller A Woman Of Substance, changed the lives of truthful galore who work it – and inactive does to this day.

“She was a earthy storyteller, profoundly arrogant of her Yorkshire roots – she would regale america of her clip moving connected the Yorkshire Evening Post with chap newsman Keith Waterhouse and trainee lensman Peter O’Toole, the dawn of the Soho cafe society, and the galore blessed years shared with the emotion of her life, her husband, Bob.

“For 45 years, she was a immense portion of our institution and a great, large person – we volition miss her truthful overmuch – but determination is immoderate solace successful the cognition that she is now, erstwhile again, alongside her beloved Bob. A beingness well-lived…”

Bradford besides contributed to foundation work, including arsenic an ambassador for the National Literacy Trust successful the UK and serving connected the Board of Literacy Partners successful the US.

She was awarded respective honorary doctorates of letters successful the US and UK, specified arsenic the University of Leeds, the University of Bradford, Connecticut’s Post University, and New York institutions Siena College and Mount Saint Mary College.

Following a backstage ceremonial successful New York, the writer volition beryllium buried alongside her precocious hubby astatine the city’s Westchester Hills Cemetery.