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Journeys into past
RICHARD the Third gave battles in vain, the saying goes. He also had a bad Press which endures to this day. Ask former local journalist Philippa Gregory, now internationally-acclaimed historical novelist.
For a generation which grew up with the heaving bodice rippers of yore which passed for a well-mannered woman's eroticism, tempered with a little history, Philippa's a breath of fresh air.
She's a thorough researcher who uses fact to flesh out characters who might otherwise pass into history or lurk in the shadows protesting their innocence.
"I'm pretty certain he didn't murder the princes in the Tower but he didn't have long to be king and let us see what sort of king he would have made," says Philippa. "But I do think Shakespeare gave him a bad press. He made him a great villain."
Shakespeare had his reasons, of course. Sponsors to please, a Tudor-driven agenda powering the propaganda spin, making for good dramatic writing, but poor history.
Former Portsmouth News senior reporter and BBC radio producer Philippa has made history – her story. Her historical novels have made her a household name. Her books, hardback, paperbacks, e-books, even Tweets, are all best sellers.
The Other Boleyn Girl was made into a TV drama and then a movie starring Scarlett Johansson as Mary Boleyn, Natalie Portman as the ill-fated Anne and Eric Bana as Henry VIII.
Now she's delving even further back, to the Plantagenets. War of the Roses, murder of the princes in the Tower – lots to go at for The Cousins War, a trilogy which starts with The White Queen.
Next week Philippa leaves her farm in Yorkshire for a night in Preston, hosted by Silverdells, the award-winning independent bookshop at Kirkham, to hold forth on The White Queen, which is published next Tuesday.
The talk's on Thursday August 20. Philippa's missing out on the usual Silverdell signature event, a personalised ice cream, but says her theme would have included chocolate and mint. "And vanilla – given the title of my new book."
The White Queen features Elizabeth Woodville, the mother of the princes in the tower. "She's a marvellous character," admits Philippa.
She's Tweeting the new book. David Cameron may not be a fan of Twitter – although demonstrated a working knowledge of Anglo-Saxon in a recent radio interview in describing it! – but Philippa is using the free social networking service to send friends, fans and followers text-based posts ... known as Tweets.
"I'm just about to publish The White Queen as a series of Tweets. You need tremendous
discipline to do it because it's telling the story in tiny little sections of 140 words. It's a bit like writing haikus. I'm surprised more aren't doing it."
Philippa says more of her readers are buying multiple versions of her work. There's the limited edition hardbacks for the book shelves, the paperback for the beach, the audio book for the car and more.
She reckons she had a "lucky escape" from journalism, but enjoyed her time, and looks back on it with nostalgia.
"I think the person who inspired me most was my tutor at university," she admits. Philippa obtained a BA degree in history, and later a PhD in 18th-century literature. Her first novel, Wideacre, was written as she completed her PhD. It became an instant worldwide bestseller.
"When I started my course it was
compulsory to take two other subjects so I went for history because my friend wanted to do it – and I discovered the love of my life. It was an absolute blessing.
"I write novels for pleasure. Accurate research creates the bones of the story, fiction breathes the life through the body. It combines the science of history and the art of literature – I don't think historians make for good novelists by and large.
"I've spent 10 years working on the Tudors. It's turned into a business because I've sold so many books. My first novel was written on a typewriter.
"I remember cutting up pieces of pages and then sticking it altogether! From that to Tweets ... it's quite a leap but there's a multiplicity of ways of getting the material today.
"I love research so much I'm always reading history books, mostly paperbacks, because I'm awful with books, marking them up, taking out the section in which I'm interested for study material."
And others are taking a leaf out of her books too – The Other Boleyn Girl has spawned biographies and Philippa also introduced Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry Tudor, later Henry VII, to a wider public.
"But now I've made the commitment to the Plantagenets I can see all these really
interesting projects ahead."
Which can only be good news for her readers... and even better news for the people of the Gambia in West Africa who benefit from the small charity she runs building wells in school yards there.
* The White Queen, by Philippa Gregory (Simon and Schuster, 18.99) is published on Tuesday, August 18. Philippa will be giving a talk on her book on Thursday, August 20, at the council chambers, Preston, with Silverdell Books, at 7pm. For tickets call 01772 683444.
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