Barbara Taylor Bradford dies aged 91: Typist from Leeds grew to become the ‘Grand Dame of blockbusters’ and the toast of New York society together with her movie producer husband

Bestselling novelist Barbara Taylor Bradford has died at the age of 91, it has been announced.

The A Woman of Substance author died peacefully at her home on Sunday following a short illness, ‘and was surrounded by loved ones to the very end’, a spokeswoman said.

Her books often charted the rags to riches stories of young women from humble backgrounds who become successful in the world of business thanks to years of hard work – in echoes of her own trajectory after leaving school at 15 and working as a typist for the Yorkshire Evening Post.

Leeds born Ms Taylor Bradford became the paper’s first woman’s editor, before moving to London to pursue a successful career in journalism. 

Aged 28, she met her husband, American film producer Robert Bradford, on a blind date in 1961 and they fell in love at first sight, marrying in London on Christmas Eve in 1963. 

When they moved to New York, she could easily have settled into being a high society wife, but after abandoning her attempts to write a suspense novel, she hit the big time when A Woman Of Substance was published in 1979, making her an overnight success at the age of 38.

The story followed Emma Harte’s journey from life as a servant in rural Yorkshire to heading a business empire, despite numerous personal tragedies along the way. 

She was often labelled ‘the grand dame of blockbusters’, with her 40 published books selling more than 91 million copies to date, and having been published in more than 40 languages and in 90 countries.

In her later years, she downsized to an eight-room apartment on Park Avenue, New York where she lived with her beloved Bob until his death in 2019. 

Ms Taylor Bradford was born in Leeds in May 1933, the only child of Winston and Freda Taylor.

She began work as a typist for the Yorkshire Evening Post before she was promoted to reporter and then went on to become the paper’s first woman’s 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, marrying in London on Christmas Eve in 1963.

The following year she moved to New York to live with him.

The couple were married for 55 years until he died from a major 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, and starred Liam Neeson with Jenny Seagrove playing Emma Harte. It aired on Channel 4 and went on to garner two Emmy nominations.

Seagrove said: ‘It’s 1984 and I am about to meet the world-famous legend that is Barbara Taylor Bradford. I have starred in a mini-series made of her bestselling novel A Woman Of Substance and it really matters to me that she is pleased. I am a young actress and very nervous.

‘The door opens and all I can say is that a powerhouse of glamour and warmth heads towards me, grabs me, hugs me, and says… ‘You are my Emma Harte’. And that was the start 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 another mini-series.

‘We shared dog stories – we are both besotted – and talked about everything under the sun. She never changed. Success never diluted her warmth and humour or her ability to relate to everyone she met, whether a cleaner or a princess. She never, ever forgot that she was just a girl from Yorkshire that worked hard and made good. RIP dear friend.’

The author later published A Man Of Honour, the prequel to A Woman Of Substance, which starts five years before the original and follows the fortunes of Blackie O’Neill, who leaves County Kerry for Leeds to build a better life, and meets kitchen maid Emma Harte.

Ms Taylor Bradford was awarded an OBE in 2007 for services to literature.

Charlie Redmayne, chief executive 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 still does to this day.

‘She was a natural storyteller, deeply proud of her Yorkshire roots – she would regale us of her time working on the Yorkshire Evening Post with fellow reporter Keith Waterhouse and trainee photographer Peter O’Toole, the dawn of the Soho cafe 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 company and a great, great friend – we will miss her so much – but there is some solace in the knowledge that she is now, once again, alongside her beloved Bob. 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.