Alexander Walker recalls the screen careers of the cinema's brightest stars. 3: Dirk Bogarde
'Never go into the cinema.... never compromise',
Noel Coward advised the young Dirk Bogarde after an early stage success, but, seduced by a film-fan following, he promptly broke both commandments.
The Rank Organisation's most popular male star eventually found prestige abroad, but for at least half his career he resented the compromise forced on him by the commercial cinema. Producer WENDY CLAY