Dorothy Squires Tortured Diva: An Intimate Portrait By Her Friend & Confidant
This is the first ever biography of Dorothy Squires, for a half a decade one of Britain’s most feted singers, by her friend and confidant, David Bret. They met at the height of the BBC Payola scandal, and remained close for 26 years. In this book, much of which is told in Dorothy’s own words and confidences, we learn of her triumphs and tragedies, her love affairs—the tempestuous ones with bandleader-composer Billy Reid and the actor Roger Moore, whom she married—and those she kept secret from all but her most intimate circle. Bret and Dorothy Squires never hold back when discussing the ups and downs of her life. Her refusal to grant Moore his freedom after their marriage failed. Her ferocious spats with “the establishment” which saw her banned on television and radio, and resulted in impresarios turning their backs on her until she affected one of the most spectacular comebacks in show business history. The fight to clear her name when she was arrested and accused of corruption. Her name being included on entertainment blacklists in France and America. Her sad and untimely fall from grace, brought about by the many frivolous lawsuits which left her virtually penniless and resulted in her being declared a vexatious litigant, and which saw her evicted from her home and taken in by friends. And finally, her lonely demise, and the fights over her estate. Dorothy Squires’ life was a veritable rollercoaster ride of intense, frequently almost unbearable emotion, but as Bret reveals in this fascinating and alternatively moving and sardonically humorous book, it was a wonderful life. Dorothy Squires: Troubled Diva contains over forty photographs and a complete UK and international discography. David Bret is one of Britain’s leading show business biographers. He has also published novels, two factual books about The Wars of the Roses, appeared in around thirty films and television documentaries, and made over 700 radio broadcasts.
Quotes from the book: Dorothy Squires: "What drives me is the applause. Once it's there in the bloodstream, you can't get it out. It's not the pay-cheque, it's the feeling that an audience loves you." Roger Moore, former husband: "I don't think you can develop a charisma. Either you have it or you don't have it, and she had it."
