October 2006 saw the 75th anniversary of the restoration of the Shrine of Walsingham by Alfred Hope Patten, a leading Anglo-Catholic priest of his generation, who was at the time the parish priest of Walsingham. Dismissed by detractors at the time, Walsingham has since grown into Britain's leading place of pilgrimage for Anglicans and Catholics alike. Similarly, Anglo-Catholicism itself has expanded into a creative force within the Church of England.

The need for an authoritative biography of Alfred Hope Patten has long been felt ' and this volume meets that need. Michael Yelton was afforded unrestricted access to the archives of the Shrine to produce this definitive work.

It sets out previously unpublished material on Hope's family and background and explores many of the myths that he created about himself. It deals with the struggles he had ' personal and financial ' to establish his dream in the Norfolk countryside, the failure of his vision in other areas, and assesses his legacy to the Church of England.