Never again would he act in a play outside the confines of a television or radio studio. In 1965 he read a Prologue written by Christopher Fry for the opening of the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford, but it was not until the late 1980s, when he took part in a reading for charity of stories by Saki at the National Theatre, that he rediscovered the charge generated by connecting with a ‘live’ audience. It encouraged him to embark on an extraordinary third career, dovetailed with that of the triumphant author, when he went back on the road to promote his books by giving what he sometimes called ‘concerts’ – a one-man show in which he read, recited, told amusing stories and, finally, invited the audience to ask him anything they liked. For these appearances he was billed as ‘Dirk Bogarde – By Myself’. That was only partly true. He might have been alone on the stage, but there was never a spare seat in the house.

This essay is based by the author on his ‘Dirk Bogarde: the Authorised Biography’ (Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 2004)