Author, Peter James in Conversation at Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival

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Author, Peter James in Conversation at Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival (2)

By Sarah Morgan

Here’s a quick query for you – which bestselling author has been Orson Welles’s house cleaner, produced movies starring Peter Sellers, Terry-Thomas, Michael Caine and others, and counts Queen Camilla among his biggest fans?

Peter James, of course. He’s been in Harrogate for the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, where he celebrated the forthcoming publication of One of Us is Dead, the 20th book in his ever-popular Roy Grace series. He also found the time to discuss his career to date.

James has topped the Sunday Times bestseller list on many occasions, his intricately crafted thrillers drawing in readers time and again. Perhaps it’s the attention to detail that makes his books so popular – he admits to loving research, and feels that after years of doing it, he could now plan the perfect murder.

“But could I get away with it?” he asks. “I once asked a senior former police officer if the perfect murder exists, and he said ‘yes, it’s the one we never hear of’. Anyone could kill, but most people’s conscience gets the better of them.”

Some of his readers have been there since the very beginning of his career, with many of them falling in love with Grace.

“I’ve had letters from all over the world, saying ‘Roy Grace is the only detective I’ve ever wanted to sleep with!’” laughs the writer, who divides his time between Jersey and Sussex. “I’ve spent 40 years with detectives, and the best ones are those with empathy. Grace has that. He’s the one I’d want to investigate if, god forbid, I had a relative who was murdered.”

Grace himself has faced tragedy – his beloved wife Sandy went missing on his 30th birthday, and fans spent years speculating about what may have happened to her. James admits he’s received lots of letters featuring theories over the years, including some that suggested she may have been abducted by aliens!

“My idea was to introduce the mystery in Dead Simple and resolve it in the next book,” claims James who, at the time, only had a two-book deal with his publisher. “But I strung it out for 13 or 14 more.”

Author, Peter James in Conversation at Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival (1)

“See a darker side of a woman”

However, earlier this year, he decided to put readers out of their misery by releasing They Thought I Was Dead: Sandy’s Story, written in the first person and detailing why she disappeared and what she had been doing in the intervening years.

“My wife Lara helped me a lot because I was writing it from a woman’s point of view,” explains James. “I’d written the Roy Grace novels in the third person, but I wanted this to be more personal.

“We never truly know someone else, what goes on inside a partner’s head. So I thought it would be interesting to see a darker side of a woman Roy idolised.”

The Grace books have, of course, been adapted for TV in recent years, with John Simm as the detective – and there are more episodes heading our way.

“Season four is coming in September/October, and they’re filming season five now,” says James. “I’m very involved, which I’m happy about. ITV have been wonderful. And John Simm is the nicest guy in the world. If I had to do an E-fit of what Roy Grace looked like, it would be him.”

The set has had a very special visitor too – Queen Camilla, who has been an avid reader of the author’s books for years, even sending him handwritten notes after devouring the latest publication. Before meeting the cast, she interviewed James for her own book club, The Queen’s Reading Room.

“It was surreal!” he grins. “She knows more about my books than I do! We sat and had a sandwich and chatted like old mates.

“What I love about her, a lot of people are all over rock stars and film stars, but she’s made her focus the love of reading. She’s not snobby at all, she reads humble crime writers, like me!”

The good news for fans like the Queen is that James isn’t planning on slowing up his output: “I’ve planned another five Roy Graces. I’m working on the 21st in that series at the moment, and some standalones, and a book about writing, which may come out in 2026.

“I know some writers who hate writing, but I love sitting down with the music on and really getting in the zone.”

And with that, Peter James moves on – he’s no doubt come up with another half a dozen ideas he needs to get to work on, and nobody likes to keep royalty waiting.

Top image: Richard Maude

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