Category:Lesley J Nickell

In spite of her early passion for the 17th century, Lesley's first three novels and a work of non-fiction were about the 15th century. Her story of Anne Neville was the second of five historical novels that she wrote, and the only one of her books that was published before her death.

Her childhood included many family outings to historical sites and buildings. One of these was to Boscobel House, where they went into the tiny priest hole in which Prince Charles (later Charles II) hid while escaping from the battle of Worcester. They also saw the famous oak tree up which he hid.

That was the start of many teenage re-enactments. Lesley was Charles; her younger sister (conveniently exactly 3 years younger) was brother James; and every wood in England had an oak tree which had to be climbed while unsuspecting walkers were Parliamentarian soldiers searching beneath.

Encouraged by family and school, she started reading historical non-fiction and also novels including Jean Plaidy's trilogy about Charles II and 'The Stranger Prince' by Margaret Irwin - the story of Rupert of the Rhine. Lesley fell in love with Rupert at that time, feelings rekindled while she was writing 'Butterfly' many years later.

With her school friends, the re-enactments of the 17th century continued - Lesley as Charles II. Her sister even knew some of the friends better by their 'alter ego' names - Sam (Pepys), Barbara (Castlemaine), George (Villiers).

Lesley never lost her love of history, historical buildings, books, plays, dressing-up - and in some ways lived more in the past, which seemed to her so vivid and real, than in the present.

Not surprisingly, one of her passions was going to the theatre - initially ballet, but increasingly plays and especially anything by the RSC. When she got a car at the age of 18, and for many years after, she and her sister spent a whole week in Stratford every year, seeing every play in the repertoire. That included 1963 when all of Shakespeare's histories were performed.

In 1970, aged 26, she moved to Stratford and lived there until her death in 2013, happily surrounded by historical buildings, historians and archivists, theatres, actors, authors and musicians.

At school, she started writing; and she never stopped. She wrote short stories, reviews of plays, studies of historical characters - and some of these appeared in publications such as magazines and specialist newspapers. Then in 1970, shortly before she moved to Stratford, she started writing her first full-length novel.

Lesley's first three novels were not set in the 17th century but the 15th century. When and why did she become fascinated by this period? Initially through the following influences:

- In 1961, television showed all Shakespeare's histories under the title "The Age of Kings". Edward IV was played by an attractive, tall, blond Julian Glover ... and Edward became a rival to Rupert for Lesley's affections.

- In 1962, Josephine Tey's "Franchise Affair" was serialised on the television. This led her to Tey's other books and Inspector Grant ... and 'The Daughter of Time', which in turn led to Paul Murray Kendall's tetralogy on the 15th century: "The Yorkist Age", "Warwick the Kingmaker", "Louis XI" and "Richard III". Although Lesley's reading and research were always extensive, these four books were the only sources she actually acknowledged for "The White Queen". They had aroused her interest and fascination about the 'real' Richard III - what was he like, what were his relationships with others, what did he do and what did he not do?

- In 1963, the annual pilgrimage to Stratford included seeing all of Shakespeare's histories in one week, with "The Wars of the Roses" as a marathon with three plays in one day. Roy Dotrice played another version of a very attractive Edward of York. Although it was another 6 or 7 years before Lesley starting writing her first novel, the ideas had clearly germinated long before and the reading and research never stopped. She wrote three novels set in the 15th century, the trilogy "Sprigs of Broom":

“Sons of York” about Edward IV’s young sons and his (imaginary) mistress. What did happen to the Princes in the Tower?

“The White Queen” about Anne Neville, Richard III’s wife. What was Anne, of whom history tells us so little, really like? Was Richard a bloody tyrant and wicked uncle?

“Perkin” about the Pretender Perkin Warbeck. Who was he - a son of Edward IV?

Perkin and Sons of York are due to be published in late 2015.