Sur le plateau de tournage de « Reseau Corneille « On the film set for the miniseries of “Jackdaws”

Barbara and I are off to Paris to visit the set of TF1’s adaptation of ‘Jackdaws’. Looking forward to meeting the cast and crew.

As 2026 is the National Year Of Reading, I thought I’d share some of my tips for reading more. If you have any tips of your own, why not share them in the comments?

It’s #NationalWritingDay. If you’re a budding author, you might be interested to know that my BBC Maestro writing course is 40% off today with code WRITERSDAY40.

My episode of Book Off with Amy Jeffs is now live. You can listen to it here: shorturl.at/WYu8J

One of the most fascinating things about Stonehenge is that there is always more to discover. Just last week, Phil Harding and Wessex Archelogy uncovered a wooden structure which they think may have been a ‘prototype’ for the monument www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

Stonehenge is aligned with sunrise on Midsummer Day and sunset on Midwinter Day. Why? That question inspired Circle of Days, my latest book. www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlrW...

Why I don’t mind plot problems — in fact I like them.

I’m looking forward to hearing Professor Jay Parini discussing the poetry of Robert Frost tonight. My favourite of his poems is “Mending Wall”.

Holidays are great, but it’s always nice to come back home.

The UK paperback of Circle of Days was published on 21st May – just in time for summer holidays. If you’ve taken the book away with you, I’d love to know where to.

It doesn’t matter how good or exciting your story is, your readers won’t care unless you can also make them care about your characters. That’s why character work is so important. bbcm.co/43sz2qz

Circle of Days is out now in paperback in India.

This bank holiday weekend, I’m reading “The Adversary” by Emmanuel Carrère. It’s a stunning true crime mystery.

Circle of Days is out now in paperback in the UK geni.us/CircleofDaysPB

Today is #InternationalMusueumDay One of my favourite museums to visit is the South Wales Miners Museum.

For my UK readers, there's just one week left until you can get your hands on a paperback copy of Circle of Days geni.us/CircleofDaysPB

I have a routine for writing. I don’t know a single writer who doesn’t. bbcm.co/43sz2qz

Looking forward to seeing Down to Chance at the Pleasance Theatre this afternoon.

There’s just under two weeks to go until Circle of Days is available in paperback in the UK but you can pre-order your copy now. geni.us/CircleofDaysPB

For #WorldBookNight I’m reading Mr Bowling Buys a Newspaper. The #ReadingHour will take place tonight from 19:00. So, why not make time for a good book?

For #WorldArtDay, I wanted to celebrate some of my recent book covers from around the world. I think they all look great. What about you? Do you have a favourite?

I’ve finished the re-write of my next book, The Deep and Secret Things. The next step is to send it to my editors and researchers for their comments.

I’m honoured to have been made a Freeman of the City of London.

I use Word when I'm writing, but it has never been as good as the old WordPerfect. I write longhand when I’m planning the story, but once the outline is finished I type. Here’s a page from my notebook for Circle of Days

For #NationalPuppyDay here’s a throwback photo to when our Labradors were still small enough to be lap dogs.

I never play music while I’m writing. That’s not because it distracts me. On the contrary, I’m so deep into the imaginary world that I just don’t hear the music. How about you? Do you listen to music while you work?

Happy Mother’s Day. This is my mother helping me learn to walk.

Dropped by the London Book Fair this week for the National Year of Reading 2026 reception. Great to see so many UK and international publishers and booksellers all in one place.

I have some news... geni.us/thedeepandse...

On #WorldBookDay I’m immersed in the fascinating “Alexander: God, King, Man,” a thrilling biography by a great historian, Edmund Richardson.

When I'm writing, I make a spreadsheet in Excel to keep track of my characters. I copy and paste their appearance and their age at each point in the narrative. This way, I’m less likely to give someone blue eyes in Chapter 5 and brown in Chapter 15.

When I'm writing, I like to start work early. I’m usually at my desk ready to work by 05.30 and write until early afternoon, with stops for breakfast and lunch. I work best in the mornings.

Barbara and I are dog people and have always had Labradors. How about you? Dogs? Cats? Rabbits? Snakes? Fish? #LoveYourPetDay

Happy Lunar New Year. 2026 is the Year of the Fire Horse.

The original “Yes, Minister” comedy was so true to life that my political friends saw it as more of a documentary. I’m looking forward to this spin-off at The Apollo Theatre this evening

If you’re in London this Saturday come and join me at Dingwalls for a night of punk, rock and blues—all in support of Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity. Final tickets: eventbrite.co.uk/e/vintage-centrist-dad-at-dingwalls-tickets-1974816922576

Your questions answered: Why is my latest book called #CircleOfDays?

Remembering the late Martin Luther King, Jr. as the United States marks his birthday. #MLKDay #IHaveADream

“Stencirkeln”, the Swedish translation of my novel #CircleOfDays is out now. Click the link below to find out more & order your copy: geni.us/kfcod

For a deeper look at the themes behind my latest novel, #CircleOfDays, I spoke with Jaya Bhattacharji Rose for the Times Of India. To catch up, search #TOIBookmark wherever you get your podcasts.

Looking forward to an evening out with friends to see #Othello at Theatre Royal Haymarket in London.

Flint was one of the most valuable materials of the Stone Age. As part of my research for #CircleOfDays, I visited Grime’s Graves to learn more about life as a flint miner. youtu.be/N_jhBhBUNr8?...

100% of the money goes to Great Ormond Street to help build their Cancer in Children Centre: Click below to book:

Happy New Year to all my readers.

My year in review. See you in 2026.

I recently sat down with Alessandro Cattelan on the #Supernova Vodcast to talk about writing, research, and my latest book #CircleOfDays. To catch up go to: youtu.be/Y8J-ZENPxi0?...

Thank you to the translators who bring my books to life in so many languages. Your work allows my stories to reach millions of readers around the world, and I’m grateful for everything you do.

Happy birthday Barbara.