If you follow me on Instagram, you will know that my main obsessions in life (excluding my wonderful family and friends, of course!) are period dramas and royalty. I love both with such a passion, I have to own the fact that sometimes it is a bit of a problem...
I can spend hours watching and re-watching my favourite dramas like Downton Abbey, The Crown and The Tudors and I can spend hours reading biographies and watching documentaries about the British Royal family past and present.
So why and how did this obsession start and how does it influence my writing today>
My period drama addiction started with the 1995 BBC production of Pride & Prejudice and went from there - I couldn't get enough of the costumes, the houses, the romance...but I also loved the adaptations of Agatha Christie's Poirot and Miss Marple novels. It was mainly these shows that started me on my mission to watch more and more.
All too soon my reading preference changed from contemporary to historical (although I still regularly read contemporary) and I became happily immersed in any period from Tudor to Georgian to Victorian. I love it all!
As for the British Royal obsession, I suppose that really started with Princess Diana in the 80s - I was only seven years old when she married Prince Charles but by my early teens, I was interested in anything and everything she did. Something that lasted until her sad, early death. From Diana came my interest in the history of the British monarchy and these days you will always find me with either a royal biography or royalty influenced novel on my bedside table.
This love of period drama and royalty has served me well as a constant well of inspiration for my next historical novel or series - very often I will take a drama or event from history where something about it continues to harangue me. So much so, that I am compelled to write a different version of what might have happened - taking the event as inspiration but making it my own unique, untold story.
Period dramas and Royalty will always remain a huge part of my work and long may that continue!
Why not download the series that was inspired by the period dramas Mr Selfridge and The Paradise? The entire Pennington's series is available from Amazon in one easy click - four books for less than £10/$18!!
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