One cannot help but wonder what further paths his film career might have taken had he been given more opportunities to play the challenging character roles he craved: ‘I’ve never, never gotten the parts that I would actually like to have . . .’ (Guerin, 82) Over the years, there had been interesting, usually European projects, which for lack of funds or other problems would fall through. In 1968, he spoke of filming Jean Renoir’s Memoirs of Captain Jacques, set in the belle époque, with Jeanne Moreau. Alain Resnais asked him to make a film with Vanessa Redgrave. (A Particular Friendship, 107-108) There were visionary projects such as Proust’s Remembrance of Things Past, to be made with Visconti, but the director’s illness ended those dreams. Unfortunately none of these films or others discussed with directors and writers was ever made. It was a loss for Bogarde’s admirers, who would have valued seeing him perform in many more roles with artistic scope and complexity.

Although some directors and producers were more interested in financial gain than in quality, Bogarde’s talent was held in the highest esteem where it counted, by the most élite directors in England and Europe and by discerning filmgoers around the world, with the result that the roles he wanted and did play are considered among the finest on screen.

With poignant insight, Joe Losey paid this tribute: ‘Dirk fought the system and he carries scars, but I would say that he has won. In a sense he gave up stardom and security to become an actor who is always exceptional and frequently extraordinary. ’ (Introduction, The Films of Dirk Bogarde, 2)