Some weeks back, a survey of 2,000 British readers voted Atticus Finch the most inspiring literary character ever. He may have been on their minds of course: his creator, Harper Lee, died in February. But in picking Finch, they must surely have chosen Gregory Peck as well.
The lanky Californian was so perfect as Finch in Robert Mulligan's 1962 film adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird that he's become synonymous with the character, and it's impossible now to read Lee's novel without seeing his square-jawed profile. It was Peck's greatest role, won him his only Oscar and his performance was praised by everyone, including Harper Lee, who later said "when he played Atticus Finch, he played himself".
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