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June Brown memoir to S&S

14.12.11 | Lisa Campbell

Simon & Schuster has paid a "healthy six-figure sum" for the autobiography of June Brown, who has played the character Dot Branning, formerly Cotton, in TV's "EastEnders" from its launch in 1985.

Deputy non-fiction editorial director Carly Cook acquired rights to the book via Derek Webster at AMI in a pre-emptive bid.

The title, which will be published in autumn 2013, is a book Cook said she has been trying to sign “for years".

Cook said: “June has undoubtedly lived a full and fascinating life—she is one of the few national treasures left not to have done her autobiography and she has more to say than most. 

“As big celebrity non-fiction prospects stand for 2013, June Brown’s story is a proper one, the life of someone who is hugely respected and much-loved. Although best known for her brilliant portrayal of Dot Branning, she is seen as an institution—an outstanding TV and stage actress whose appeal is far-reaching and ageless”.

The 84-year-old Brown played the character of Dot in East Enders from 1985 to 1993 and then from 1997 onwards. She has also starred in a West End production of "Calendar Girls". The actress has been twice married and has five children, losing a sixth. Her first husband, actor John Garley, committed suicide in 1957.

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