The Hawk Is Dead

Afterword

The question every author is probably asked most often is: ‘Where do you get your ideas from?’

When I began my writing career, the answer I never thought I’d be giving in a million years would have been: ‘Well, for this book, my ideas are from Her Majesty The Queen, actually.’

But it’s true. I’m fortunate enough to count Queen Camilla as my number one fan. In 2019, as the then-Duchess of Cornwall, she wrote me a letter asking if my next Roy Grace novel might be centred in London. As history tells us, things have not ended well for people who have displeased any former Queen of England — just look back to Elizabeth I, who had 100 or so men hanged, drawn and quartered, or to ‘Bloody’ Mary, who turned some 300 souls into human bonfires.

Not relishing such prospects, I instead thought: What better place in London than Buckingham Palace? At least for a key part of the story. I mulled it over for the next four years, as I always do when I’m planning and plotting, trying to think how a detective based in Sussex could become involved in a major crime in the Royal Household.

Then I read in a newspaper article that all 775 rooms of Buckingham Palace were undergoing major renovation, taking place over the course of several years. There were concerns for the security and safety of more than a million highly valuable items housed in the Royal Collection during that period — items such as paintings and sculptures by some of the greatest artists of the past, rare ornaments, jewellery, furniture, silverware, glassware and more. Almost all of incalculable value.

This gave me the meat I needed for the bones of my idea! I wrote a brief outline about Queen Camilla travelling on the Royal Train to Sussex, where, on arrival, a senior member of the Royal Household is murdered. As this is Roy Grace’s manor and he is the on-call SIO, he takes charge of the case. His enquiries lead him to Buckingham Palace, where he uncovers the true hornets’ nest: a conspiracy to steal items from the Royal Collection and sell them on the dark web. And the ruthless conspirators — trusted members of the Royal Household staff — are willing to murder anyone who gets in their way...

Soon after starting my serious research, I learned something I have learned many times before: so often the truth can be much stranger than fiction! In 2021, a Buckingham Palace footman was arrested and subsequently found guilty of stealing items of royal memorabilia, which he sold on the internet. Less sophisticated than the villains in my novel, he was caught through recognition of the pattern of the counterpane on his bed, on which he had laid out the items to photograph...

This novel has been the most brilliant and amazing adventure for me. I’ve had wonderful insights into the workings of the Royal Household, seen what goes on deep inside Buckingham Palace and, as a totally unexpected bonus, achieved my boyhood dream of driving a train.

A key scene very early in the novel is when the Royal Train, carrying Queen Camila and her entourage, is derailed in a tunnel just north of the city of Brighton and Hove. I wanted to introduce a character who is the proud driver of this train. There are a few drivers who are trained to drive the Royal Train — but, for security reasons, none of them knows if they are to be chosen to drive the train that day until the day itself. And, as the train is rarely used, some drivers never get the chance to drive a Principal in their entire career. So, on this occasion, for my character Stan Briggs, approaching retirement, this is the pinnacle of his professional life, driving the train from London Victoria to Brighton. Little does he know that disaster lies ahead.

I was fortunate to receive enthusiastic help from Network Rail, who allowed me in the cab, alongside the driver, on a journey from Brighton to London and its return route. Additionally, I had a lesson on a very realistic simulator. I learned that there is so much more to driving a train than I had ever imagined and this is described in the scenes of the book. The responsibility of driving any passenger train is massive, often transporting far more passengers than an airline pilot would, and the driver has to be aware of so much, all the time. Not to mention it can take a mile to bring a full train of eight-to-twelve carriages to a stop. I asked my instructor — who is both a train driver and the senior instructor for Network Rail — if he had ever forgotten to stop at a station. He admitted he had once forgotten to stop at Gatwick Airport, resulting in many people missing their flights. ‘You only forget to stop once!’ he told me with a wry smile. I came away with tremendous respect for these drivers.

I hope that, as much as you enjoy the story itself, you will find the inner workings of the Royal Household fascinating too, whether or not you consider yourself a royalist. I also hope that you will have as much fun delving behind the scenes of Buckingham Palace — which is more than just a globally iconic building, it is an enduring symbol of the British nation — as I had writing this novel.