helen sandler | journalismPeter Ackroyd
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Capital Offences Revelling in the history of books and the sights and sounds of London past and present, prolific writer Peter Ackroyd tells Helen Sandler about his obsessions Peter Ackroyd CBE has such a body of work behind him that even he seems to forget he isn't quite a grand old man of literature just yet. He has written more than two dozen books, from fiction and poetry to biography, won prizes including the Somerset Maugham Award (for The Last Testament of Oscar Wilde) and the Guardian Fiction Prize (for Hawksmoor), presented a recent BBC TV series on London, and is currently working on several new projects at once. It's quite a CV for a man his age and, when asked if he would ever find time for a relationship (a decade after losing his long-term partner to AIDS), he responds as if he's twenty years older than he is. "I'm too old now," he says. Then he catches himself and laughs. "Well, I'm not that old - I'm 55. But I'm not interested. My main focus is on my work, so the relationship would really be too much of a distraction." Ackroyd's work is certainly involving - for the reader as well as the writer. His latest book, The Lambs of London, an intelligent historical novel with elements of mystery, will be enjoyed by all lovers of Shakespeare. It is based on incidents in the lives of Charles and Mary Lamb, known for their Tales from Shakespeare, and William Ireland, a young bookseller. "I've been interested in the Lambs for a long time and was thinking of writing about them years ago," says Ackroyd. "The story of William Ireland and [his father] Samuel Ireland has also interested me for a while and I even wrote a play about it a few years ago but did nothing with it. I put it to the back of my mind, but then somehow the two ideas clicked, I put them together and the novel emerged out of that." Unlike some historical novelists who only invent where the truth is unknown, Ackroyd is happy to change the facts to fit the fiction. The dramatic and bloody climax to Mary Lamb's history has been altered in this book, for instance. "The real life is quite different from the one I made up for her," admits Ackroyd. "I don't think it matters; so long as I write a convincing story, I'm happy with that. The facts are quite different, but that's another story." In the novel, William Ireland turns up documents in Shakespeare's name, including a lost play, Vortigern. This raises questions of authorship and authenticity that echo themes from Ackroyd's earlier work, Chatterton. "I suppose the interest is an abiding one," says the author, "and the Ireland story is all true." The tale takes place in the capital city, like most of Ackroyd's work. "London emerges in this book - as in other books I've written - as the abiding backdrop," he says. "In this case it's a period in London's history which I haven't really explored before: the 1790/1800 period. I've never directly described or observed that period before, so it's a new departure in that sense, although the theme of London is a very familiar one." This familiarity meant the author did not have to do any fresh research for the novel. "It came to me instinctively at this stage," he says. "If I don't know about it first-hand, I can guess what it might have been like." If London is always present in his work, he does not feel the same need to introduce homosexuality into every book, although there is a mention in The Lambs of an abandoned black boy who is taken in as a servant by two churchmen and expected to provide certain additional services that are not in the job description. As the boy's age is not clear, the reader cannot be sure as to just how abusive this set-up may be, but its inclusion seems to refer to all the inequalities of England past and present. Ackroyd must have seen these from all sides, having made the unusual journey from London council estate to Cambridge and Yale universities in his youth. But his sexuality has not been a source of anguish. He has thought of himself as gay since he was very young and has little to say on the topic. "There was no sudden revelation about it," he says matter-of-factly. No traumatic coming out? "No. I was lucky enough to avoid anything of that nature, it just happened." He is not sure whether being gay has affected his work. "It's very difficult to determine. I have no way of knowing because not having ever been heterosexual, I have no relevant mark to judge it by. But I suppose as it's part of my personality it must have some connection." Although he lives in central London he no longer goes to gay bars and doesn't know many gay people. "I know a few of course, a few friends, but wouldn't say I am part of a community." The same is true for other writers. "I'm afraid I'm rather stand-offish when it comes to that sort of thing." He doesn't show his work to anyone else until it's finished, when he gives it to certain people to check for facts. "But when I'm in the process of it, it's just my activity. And I always work on several at once to stop myself being bored. I'm finishing a novel, doing the research on a long book on the Thames and writing various short biographies." That casual use of the term "various" would intimidate many writers but there is a series called "Peter Ackroyd's Brief Lives" in the making, of which only Chaucer has been published so far, and he has just finished a full-length biography of Shakespeare which should appear next year. The novel in progress is called The Fall of Troy. "It's not set in London at all," he says triumphantly. "It's a relief, a sort of liberation after spending so many years on books set in London - to get away from it is refreshing." It remains to be seen how long he can keep away from this abiding passion. The Lambs of London is published by Chatto & Windus in hardback at £15.99.
This piece first appeared in Gay Times, October 2004 © Helen Sandler 2004 |
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