Great paperbacks

At first glance you'd think the parts Rex Harrison played on screen bore an uncanny resemblance to the man himself - My Fair Lady, Blithe Spirit and The Constant Husband all featured a witty, wellmannered gent women couldn't help but fall for.

In fact, Harrison was much more like Henry VIII, whom he once played on stage. Harrison, too, chalked up six wives (one died, another committed suicide, as did a long-term girlfriend) and, as Alexander Walker's terrific biography reveals, was an arrogant egomaniac.

The best moments are those that deflate Harrison's dapper image - he liked "eggy things", apparently, and wasn't keen on heights. He spent ages writing unamusing new lyrics for I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face, and renamed My Fair Lady My Big Cock.

Walker never lets him off the hook, particularly questioning his conduct around the time of the first suicide. But he also recognises Harrison's appeal, and, crucially, that "his saving grace was that he never made an excuse for himself ".