THE LIFE IN MY YEARS
Virginia McKenna
Foreword by Joanna Lumley

Virginia McKenna starred in some of the most popular and enduring movies of our time, among them Carve Her Name With Pride, A Town Like Alice, and the extraordinarily successful Born Free (a film Barack Obama recently admitted to having been inspired by), in which she and husband, Bill Travers depicted the story of conservationists George and Joy Adamson and their reintroduction of Elsa the orphaned lion club to the wild.

After Born Free both actors were at the peak of their careers but the film and all it still stands for changed their lives. Its powerful message stayed with them and so began a worldwide campaign to save animals from commercial exploitation, incarceration in zoos and loss of their natural habitat.

At the heart of this book is a cry for change in attitude – to respect nature and all that it provides. Virginia McKenna has pushed aside the glamour of movie stardom and the West End where she starred in major shows like The King and I and A Little Night Music to focus on her personal mission with the Born Free Foundation, an international wildlife charity, supported by a network of like-minded celebrities including Joanna Lumley, Martin Clunes, Jenny Seagrove, Amanda Holden and Helen Worth.

Through the prism of memory a lifetime of experiences, ecstatic, amusing or tragic have flooded back in the form of anecdotes, meditations and poems to form this book. This book will inspire anyone who cares about the future of the planet and all the creatures dependent on it, including human beings. The Life in My Years is the inspirational story of an extraordinary life.

The autobiography of one of our best-loved actresses and most respected conservationists, recently voted one of the most inspirational people of all time in a Daily Telegraph poll.

Published to coincide with the 25th Anniversary of the Born Free Foundation, which Virginia McKenna chairs. Part of the proceeds from each book will go to the Born Free Foundation, the international wildlife charity.

For Press enquiries about Virginia McKenna and The Life in My Years, please contact Shirley Galligan at Born Free – shirley@bornfree.org.uk

2009 was a very special year, the Born Free Foundation’s Silver Anniversary. It is 25 years since Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers established the Foundation (known as Zoo Check), following their starring roles in the classic film ‘Born Free’. Today, led by their son and co-founder Will, Born Free is a dynamic international wildlife charity, devoted to conservation and animal welfare.

Please visit: http://www.bornfree.org.uk/get-involved/events/ to see a list of Born Free events in early 2010.