A little-known writer who devoted his life to poetry after missing out on a career as an Olympic athlete drew a crowd of distinguished artists to the premiere of a film about his work yesterday afternoon.

Eddie Forde, originally from County Mayo in Ireland, has been making meaning out of life with his musings on Putney's people and places for the past 40 years.

The bearded and bespectacled 74-year-old, who now lives in sheltered accommodation in Roehampton, turned to poetry after narrowly missing qualifying for the 800metres at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome.

But it was only after meeting Wimbledon photographer Gareth Harmer, who takes pictures for this newspaper, at a poetry reading event in The Green Man pub on Putney Hill three years ago that he decided to record his poetry on camera.

"If somebody said to me you're going to die tomorrow I would do a poem.

"If somebody said you have only got three hours to live I would do a poem about it", he says in the film, which was shown to an audience of 70 people in Southside House in Wimbledon yesterday.

Eddie Forde recites Naive of SW15. Video: Gareth Harmer

The half-hour film follows the wacky figure around his familiar haunts in Putney as he recites poems often inspired by his surroundings.

Poet John Mole, who introduced the film as a "long-overdue" recognition of Forde's work, said: "Putney is in a sense the home that he starts from and who knows where he is going, least of all him."

The film also records candid interviews of the poet describing his working process.

Mr Harmer, who was asked by Forde to make the film, said: "For me, he's a friend and it's his good nature I appreciate most.

"But as far as the film goes and working with him what makes him interesting is his work and the fact that he's so engaged in writing poetry.

"It's a central part of his life and I find that really interesting, the sense of purpose that he has and that he's always had in his life."

Forde moved to Liverpool with his father as a young boy after his parents separated and he draws on his past "struggles" in some of his poems.

After a series of "crap jobs" he decided to pursue poetry after showing some of his writing to a friend in a pub in Hampstead in 1961, later studying at the University of Roehampton.

Eddie Forde recites Eternity is a Long Time to Go Without a Pint. Video: Gareth Harmer

Speaking at the premiere, he said: "Gareth had the faith to go on this journey to make this film and I would like to take the film to universites because every youngster wants to make a film and everyone wants to be famous but three years later we have made the film and it's just been a wonderful thing".

Forde does regular poetry readings at The Green Man and Roehampton and Wimbledon libraries. To read more of his poems, visit putneypoems.co.uk.