I feel slightly uneasy at the way historians are consulted as if history is going to repeat itself. It never does.

I feel slightly uneasy at the way historians are consulted as if history is going to repeat itself. It never does.

I am not someone who believes I am going to find a historical scoop.

I just love the days when you come out of the archives with half a dozen excellent descriptions or poignant accounts of personal experiences.

To begin impatiently is the worst mistake a writer can make

It takes me three or four years to research and write each book and the individual stories stay with you for a long time afterwards.

The blurring of fact and fiction has great commercial potential, which is bound to be corrupting in historical terms.