‘Forever Young’ by Hayley Mills

My Review (4 stars out of 5)

(Audiobook)

Actress Hayley Mills recounts her journey from an untroubled childhood in post-war Britain, to worldwide fame as a child actor. Coming from a well-known theatrical family (John Mills, Juliette Mills etc), she got to know a host of famous actors, writers and directors, including Walt Disney, Bryan Forbes, Jane Wyman, George Sanders, Maureen O’Hara and Ian McShane.

This memoir details the life and work of Hayley Mills from her birth until the time of her separation from husband Roy Boulting in the mid-seventies. As a kid, I was a big fan, so this was a fascinating insight into the background surrounding her best-known movies, including ‘Tiger Bay’, ‘Whistle Down the Wind’, ‘Pollyanna’ and ‘Sky West and Crooked’. Though the book is not particularly well written (it’s absolutely stuffed with cliches), I loved all the anecdotes and the author’s opinions on the actors and directors she most admired, as well as those she wasn’t quite so keen on. The book also relates the ongoing saga of her trust fund, revealing how most of her earnings as a child were eventually gobbled up by the tax man.

It’s a shame the book only covers the early part of her career, but it is nevertheless an absorbing account by one of my childhood heroines.

Back to the Blog