Bestselling author Barbara Taylor Bradford has died at the age of 91, it has been announced.
The author of A Woman of Substance died peacefully at her home on Sunday after a short illness, “and was surrounded by loved ones until the end,” a spokeswoman said.
She wrote a total of forty novels during her career, with her most recent, The Wonder of It All, published last year.
Ms Taylor Bradford had started and abandoned several novels during her journalistic career – until she hit the big time when A Woman Of Substance was published in 1979, making her an overnight success.
The story followed Emma Harte’s journey from a life as a servant in rural Yorkshire to running a business empire, despite numerous personal tragedies along the way.
She was often labeled as ‘the great lady of blockbusters’; her books have sold more than 91 million copies to date and have been published in more than 40 languages and in 90 countries.
Bestselling author Barbara Taylor Bradford has died at the age of 91, it has been announced. Above: The author in New York in 2006
The author of A Woman of Substance died peacefully at her home on Sunday, November 24, after a short illness, “and was surrounded by loved ones until the end,” a spokeswoman said. Above: Mrs. Bradford on her 21st birthday
Mrs Taylor Bradford was born in Leeds in May 1933, the only child of Winston and Freda Taylor.
She started working as a typist for the Yorkshire Evening Post before being promoted to reporter and subsequently becoming the paper’s first female editor.
At the age of 20 she moved to London and worked in Fleet Street for Woman’s Own and the London Evening News.
She met her husband, American film producer Robert Bradford, in 1961 and they fell in love at first sight and married on Christmas Eve in 1963 in London.
The following year she moved to New York to live with him.
The couple was married for 55 years until he died of a massive stroke in 2019.
A Woman of Substance became a huge bestseller and was followed by many other successful books.
A TV adaptation of A Woman Of Substance followed in 1985, starring Liam Neeson and Jenny Seagrove as Emma Harte. It aired on Channel 4 and earned two Emmy nominations.
Seagrove said: “It’s 1984 and I’m about to meet world-renowned legend Barbara Taylor Bradford. I starred in a miniseries of her bestseller A Woman Of Substance and it really matters to me that she is happy. I’m a young actress and very nervous.
Barbara Taylor Bradford with her husband Robert at the launch of her novel Angel in 1993
Barbara Taylor Bradford at a gala in New York with her friend Avanti Nehru Madan, May 2023
Barbara Taylor Bradford receives an OBE from The Queen at Buckingham Palace, 2007
Barbara Taylor Bradford at age three with her mother Freda Taylor
Barbara Taylor Bradford at her desk. The author wrote 40 novels and sold 91 million copies
Barbara Taylor Bradford at her home with her dog in 1980, the following year she had become an overnight sensation
‘The door opens and all I can say is that a powerhouse of glamor and warmth comes towards me, grabs me, hugs me and says… ‘You are my Emma Harte’. And that was the beginning of a long friendship with the force of nature that I am proud to call my friend: Barbara Taylor Bradford.
‘We saw each other whenever she and her beloved Bob were in London. I did Hold The Dream for them as a new miniseries.
‘We shared dog stories – we’re both in love – and talked about everything under the sun. She never changed. Success never diluted her warmth and humor, nor her ability to relate to everyone she met, whether it was a cleaner or a princess. She never, ever forgot that she was just a Yorkshire girl who worked hard and made good. RIP dear friend.’
The author later published A Man Of Honour, the prequel to A Woman Of Substance, which begins five years before the original and follows the fate of Blackie O’Neill, who leaves County Kerry to build a better life, and a kitchen maid met. Emma Harte.
Ms Taylor Bradford was awarded an OBE in 2007 for her services to literature.
Ms Taylor Bradford had started her journalism career and ditched several novels – until she hit the big time when A Woman Of Substance (right) was published in 1979.
Daily Mail interview with Barbara Taylor Bradford in 1983
A 1987 article in the Daily Mail about bestselling author Barbara Taylor Bradford
Charlie Redmayne, CEO of publisher HarperCollins, said: ‘Barbara Taylor Bradford was a truly exceptional writer whose first book, the international bestseller A Woman Of Substance, changed the lives of so many who read it – and continues to do so.
‘She was a natural storyteller, deeply proud of her Yorkshire roots – she would rejoice in her time working on the Yorkshire Evening Post with fellow reporter Keith Waterhouse and trainee photographer Peter O’Toole, the start of the Soho pub society, and the many happy years shared with the love of her life, her husband, Bob.
“For 45 years she was a huge part of our business and a wonderful friend – we will miss her so much – but there is some comfort in knowing she is now standing next to her beloved Bob again. A life well lived…’
Following a private funeral in New York, the author will be buried alongside her late husband at the city’s Westchester Hills Cemetery.