As well as two novels and several plays which have been performed, Garry O’Connor has written biographies of Ralph Richardson, Sean O’Casey, Peggy Ashcroft, Paul Scofield, William Shakespeare, and most recently Alec Guinness (Alec Guinness The Unknown).

He comes from a family of musicians and artists; his father was the well-known Irish tenor, Cavan O’Connor, while his great- aunt (and subject of The Pursuit of Perfection, his first biography) was Dame Maggie Teyte, the operatic soprano and interpreter of French song. Darlings of the Gods, his account of Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier’s marriage and Australian tour of 1948 was filmed in 1991 for television and shown all over the world. He lives near Banbury in Oxfordshire.

Bloomsbury have just published Universal Father, his new biography of Pope John Paul II, the first to tell the full and extraordinary story of one of the most influential figures of the twentieth century, and which sets the private individual in the public context. ‘What is new and unusual about this timely biography is the attention the author gives to the inner man.

Garry O’Connor has not only investigated Karol Wojtyla’s life before he became pope, his love of football, skiing and the outdoor life, his commitment to acting, his friendships with men and women, his experiences under German then Soviet occupation, his early years as a priest, but he has also subtly analysed the pope’s own poems, plays and philosophical works as clues to what makes him tick.

The result is a living portrait, vivid and accessible, based on scrupulous research that dramatically tracks the personal tragedies, including the assassination attempt in 1981, and the great public confrontations on the world stage.’

Universal Father is described by Damian Thompson in The Daily Telegraph, 23 April 2005, as the ‘best’ biography of John Paul II, as well as ‘an artistic achievement in its own right’.

Apart from the subjects of his books and plays, Garry O’Connor can speak on a variety of themes: e.g. acting, how the great actors work, what makes them tick, and how they can teach others; the meaning of integrity and leadership (from the Pope); the skill and art of interviewing; what we writers think of critics; writing biography and autobiography; and even writing and having a large family (he has six children).