Peter O'Toole less the drunken hell-raiser he made out, says author

Biographer Alexander Larman says actor’s archive reveals a ‘sensitive, organised man’ - who was writing two screenplays just before he died in 2013

Peter O’Toole was writing two screenplays just before his death at the age of 81, according to research that also suggests the actor’s hell-raising image was a myth that he cultivated himself.

While working on a book about the actor, the biographer Alexander Larman had a glimpse of screen versions of the Seán O’Casey play Juno and the Paycock, and Chekhov’s work Uncle Vanya. He said O’Toole starred on stage in those plays, which each had characters with some similarities to O’Toole’s personality.

Related: Peter O'Toole obituary

Related: Peter O'Toole: a career in clips

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