Alison Weir on 'The Lady in the Tower

It's been nearly three years since BFKbooks interviewed Alison Weir during which she has written several books. In this interview Ann who reviewed her latest book asked her about 'The Lady in the Tower' as well as her research and other things.

Ann: Jane Grey and Elizabeth were both apparently amazingly precocious and talented. Do you think they were typical of their age and class?

Alison: Both were formidably intelligent, and were lucky enough to benefit from the kind of classical education that had only recently been extended to girls of the royal family; few aristocratic girls were so lucky, although that was gradually changing, as more parents emulated the royal example.

Ann: Have you considered writing a "what if" novel? For instance if Jane Seymour survived, or Elizabeth married, or if Henry VIII bastard son had survived?

Alison: I already have! In The Lady Elizabeth, I explored what might have happened if the future Elizabeth I had born Admiral Thomas Seymour a bastard child.

Ann: What factual event that you write about in 'The Lady in the Tower' do you wish never happened?

Alison: One could wish that Anne Boleyn had never been unjustly condemned to death.

Ann: Do you read historical fiction by other authors writing about "your" period, and do you ever contact them if you find an inconsistency?

Alison: I do. My favourite authors of historical novels are Norah Lofts, Hilda Lewis and Anya Seton. And even if they were alive, I would not contact themn to point out any errors. Life`s too short!

Ann: Which are your favourite historical characters and why?

Alison: Elizabeth I and Eleanor of Aquitaine - both brilliant, feisty women, and magnificent survivors.

Ann: Do your children read your books?

Alison: Not a chance! I can't compete with Truman Capote and Dr Who!

Ann: Of which book are you most proud?

Alison: The Lady in the Tower: The Fall of Anne Boleyn. It`s my most forensic investigation of a historical subject, and I think it`s my best book.

Ann: If you had to read something outside historical fiction what genre would it be, and what author?

Alison: I enjoy chilling thrillers by authors like Sarah Rayne, S.J. Bolton and Patrick Redmond. I read widely, and have lots of other favourite authors, too many to list here. I`m reading Sleep With Me by Joanna Briscoe right now, for the second time, just to compare it to the TV dramatisation.

Ann: What is the major source for the detail for your books - the everyday things such as clothing and what was eaten?

Alison: Numerous sources. I consult a wide range of books and - dare I say it - the internet, but I'm pretty cautious about the websites I use.

Ann: Which medieval house/site(s) would you recommend to visit and why?

Alison: Barley Hall in York comes to mind, and the Bayleaf Farmhouse at the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum. The Swan at Lavenham. I'm sure there are many others. When you visit these houses, you feel you are back there, in medieval England.

Ann: Have you acquired any medieval items - coins, furniture etc that mean a lot to you?

Alison: I have some coins - that`s all. I do have a lot of reproduction items - a court cupboard, a yeoman`s chair, a settle, painted chests and several tapestries.

Ann: Where do you start your research on an historical figure, and what makes the difference then between a factual and a fictional account?

Alison: I start with my proposal, which outlines the story, flesh it out from general hiatory books, then go to the original sources. After that, I look at secondary sources. I revise and edit all the time. Gradually, a book evolves.

Ann: How many languages did you have to learn to go back to the original sources for your books.

Alison: I read enough French and German to get by, and a little Latin, Italian and Spanish. I use a Latin translator when necessary. Fortunately most sources are available in translation.

Ann: From the Lady in the Tower, I get the impression that Elizabeth was much more like her mother than her father - would you say that was accurate ?

Alison: No, I can see character traits from both parents in her.

Ann: If Anne had had a healthy son, do you think Henry would have stayed with her ?

Alison: Yes, undoubtedly. She`d have been invincible.

Ann: Is there any source material for the Tudors, or earlier, that you know exists, but that you are unable to study ?

Alison: No.

Ann: What is your opinion of the recent TV series about Henry VIII ?

Alison: Compulsive drama, well acted, but a bit of a travesty historically. Good on foreign policy and the convoluted politics of the Divorce, and some of the recreations of the palaces were well done; I noticed that, as the series progressed, they were basing a lot more of the dialogue on original sources, but with that budget, you'd think they'd have taken more care to get it right and not distorted the facts so sensationally. There wasn`t a single female costume that was right for the period! Jonathan Rhys Myers is pretty fit, though, and good in the role, but they should have made him look more like Henry VIII - and aged him! Everyone looks far too young and beautiful. Henry`s tragedy was that he reached the age of 46 - old in those days - before he got a son to succeed him. You don`t get any sense of that in The Tudors.

Ann: What's next in the pipeline ?

Alison: The Captive Queen: A Novel of Eleanor of Aquitaine, out in April.

Traitors of the Tower, for Quick Reads (for emergent adult readers), out in March.

A biography of Mary Boleyn, for publication in 2010.

Two more novels and two more history books!