Fifteen Minutes with Amanda Prowse

"Thornbury has a heart that embraces newcomers, and that is something to be incredibly proud of."

We sat down with international best-selling author (and queen of family drama) Amanda Prowse. Amanda has published more than 30 books which have been translated into dozens of languages around the world. Arriving at the beautifully restored The Armstrong in Thornbury, Amanda’s infectious smile immediately illuminates the room ...

Firstly, Amanda, welcome home! For those who may not know, what is your connection to this little pocket of South Gloucestershire?

I am a Londoner, born in the East End, and lived there until I was 16, when my family moved en masse to Thornbury. We lived in Castle Street and I attended Castle School – I spent my snogging and dancing years here! As a family, we’ve lived in and around the town for the last 45 years and I absolutely love it. Well, I didn’t when I lived here – I couldn’t wait to leave!

And what now, in your view, makes Thornbury so special?

It’s quite simple really – it was like stepping back from pressure. Noone cared what hairstyle you had, or what trainers you wore. People were very welcoming – we felt like their arms enveloped us and welcomed us into the community immediately. Thornbury has a heart that embraces newcomers, and that is something to be incredibly proud of. We’ve had an association with Thornbury for the last 45 years, but we’re still new! And I love the idea that people can turn up and be here for a week, a month, a year, a decade and become an integral part of Thornbury life. There are fantastic schools, a lovely pace of life and there’s flowers everywhere you look! The view every time that you drive down the hill towards the leisure centre and you look to your left and you see Wales in the distance, and the Severn, and you think, this is special. And it is really special! It’s only by going away and coming back that I’ve really appreciated that. There’s not many places in the world that you can turn up and feel that sense of belonging.

What inspiration have you taken from Thornbury, and carried forward into your work?

I’ve actually set a book in Thornbury – To Love and Be Loved – it’s part-set in Cornwall and follows a young girl who grows up in a very tight-knit Cornish family down on the coast. She’s going through quite a traumatic time in her life, drives down the motorway and ends up in Thornbury (which is very much how we found it!). And it’s about how she starts a new life here – she gets a job at Thornbury Castle (we don’t name it that in the book) and it’s exactly what she needed at that time in her life (and that’s exactly what Thornbury was to me).

Do you feel then that the main character is quite reflective of you and your experiences?

I think all my characters are. It’s really hard to write someone who isn’t you. I have over 100 female characters and all of them are different facets of me. It’s saved me a fortune in therapy!

You have such a beautiful way of creating utterly relatable characters, particularly women, in your books. Are there any women in your life that continue to inspire your work?

Always! I grab snippets of people all the time. I’ll meet someone who has an interesting way of talking, an unusual walk, or a hair style and I log it away inside the vault in my head then, when I’m looking for traits for a character, I bring them out. I think taking these traits makes my characters more real.

You also have magical observation of place and painting of environment in your work. In your book All Good Things there’s a wonderful storyline about the ‘4 oaks’ and their importance to many of the main characters. Is there a particular image/part of the Thornbury landscape that when you see it, you immediately know you’re home?

Very much so! I now split my time between London and the West Country and I often come back at weekends and holidays to relax and breathe. As soon as I hit The Ship Inn on the top of the hill ... that’s the moment that I feel at home. I worked at The Ship for years, we all did, whilst we were going through Sixth Form at Castle School. It was quite fancy – silver service, white table clothes. As soon as I drive by and see the window that used to be our staff room, I can picture us all in there.

And I mustn’t forget our old house on Castle Street! My parents live very close to our old house now, and when I see it, I still see us all walking through that front door, I still picture all the lights on and everyone inside those rooms and I love that. When I left Thornbury, I thought that I was done, that was it. But my parents and my brothers stayed which meant that I kept a foundation here and I didn’t realise how important it would be in my life.

You are kindly coming back to The Armstrong at the end of June for your one-night-only fundraiser: ‘A Love Letter to Thornbury’. Can you give us a little tease of what to expect?

It’s going to be a nostalgic look at what it was like growing up in Thornbury; how desperate I was to leave and how ultimately, when realising that I could work anywhere in the world (New York, a beach in St Lucia…), the only place I really wanted to be, was Thornbury! It still feels like home.

Dare we ask if there will be any special guests?

There may be a little surprise finale, let’s leave it at that!

We’re sat here in The Armstrong’s brand new Foyer area, what are your thoughts on the recent renovation?

I always remember The Armstrong as being a bit ‘sticky’ and a bit run-down. It is full of beautiful old memories of concerts, singing carols, watching plays and the odd party, and I was really concerned that you’d lose the essence of what made it special. I cannot believe that it’s the same place! It’s stunningly beautiful, comfortable and opulent. It’s sleek. It’s everything you’d want for a venue and yet it still has that old heart – I don’t know how you’ve done it! It feels like The Armstrong Hall but it’s not, it’s The Armstrong. It’s not just a coat of paint. There’s something fundamental that’s gone on, and I think it comes from a desire from people to make it the best that it can be for the community. You feel it the moment that you walk in. It’s phenomenal. And anyone who hasn’t been, should come! Pop in!

Why, in your view, are community venues/spaces like ours, so important to local communities?

They are absolutely vital. When I was growing up (150 years ago!) there were lots of places to go – youth clubs, sports clubs, beavers and brownies, snooker clubs and these activities have become less and less. Mainly due to financial constraints and administrative limitations, people can’t take it on. So, the fact that there is somewhere to go, there is a place where people can meet, and be, and hold a function that isn’t ridiculously overpriced – communities need spaces like that. The world can feel like a bin fire a lot of the time and places like this are taking on even more importance. I cannot wait to see what you do next.

Amanda, it’s a busy time for you! Your most recent novella, Fifteen Minutes has just been published and The Way Home is due to be released in July. Both stories are very emotional in different ways. Can you give our audience a little flavour of each story?

Fifteen Minutes is my most recent novella – I like to write novellas as it’s a chance to explore other genres. I’m a little bit obsessed with death and grief, I’m immersed in it at the moment. One of my wonderful brothers, Simon, died very suddenly a couple of years ago. He lived and worked in Thornbury for most of his life and I became obsessed with this idea of wanting to see him again. I thought, how long would I need? I wouldn’t need long, he’d drive me mad! But I thought, I just need 15 minutes – to tell him everything is OK, find out how he’s doing, tell him that I love him, and all those burning questions that you think about when you’ve lost someone. So, the idea came to me to write a book where people could be gifted 15 minutes with someone they’ve lost, and it’s a collection of those encounters. I’m also writing a follow up called Fifteen Minutes More which is due out in November because people have really taken it to heart – considering who they’d choose and what they’d like to say, it’s really stirred something.

My full-length novels are more a slice of contemporary family life. The Way home is Lily-Bob’s story. Lily-Bob is in her 70s – I really like to represent older women because I feel they are massively under-represented in everything.  She lives in a flat (based on my flat!) looking over the River Thames, which is soon to be demolished – she has to leave the only home that she’s ever known. The novel explores why bricks and mortar mean so much to us. It is a dual timeline that goes back to her teenage years in the 60s and 70s and she had to face a few life-changing choices – when in fact she didn’t have any choice at all because of her circumstances. It’s nostalgic and makes us look at the deeper questions of what is important in life, what do we want to be remembered for and what ultimately, we can take with us.

Do we have an update on when ‘Chit Chat and All That’ – your podcast with other local legend Penny Dommett – will be coming back?

Yes it’s coming back! I love doing our podcast – Penny and I are besties. We met in the most hilarious and extreme of circumstances which I will talk about more at the ‘A Love Letter to Thornbury’ event. It is us in the kitchen talking nonsense and it’s hilarious. I’m renovating a studio as we speak and I just ordered the microphones today. The first episode back will likely hit around September this year.

And finally, after doing the research prior to this interview, we now need to know … what is the secret to making a cracking roast potato??

Honestly, I have perfected roast potatoes! But do you know what’s funny – I am the world’s worst cook. I can’t say this is part of my repertoire – I can’t cook anything else! The key is cooking it three times:

• Par-boil

• Smash

• Leave to dry

• Part-cook in hot fat

• Take out and leave until cool

• Whack it in the oven again with plenty of salt and fat.

It’s your week’s calories in one potato but it’s worth it!

If you’d like to find out more about best-selling author Amanda Prowse and her publications, head to her website.

Or even better, come and meet her in person – for one night only – at ‘A Love Letter to Thornbury’ on Thursday 25^th June at 7.30pm. Book your ticket here.