Past Imperfect

My uncle Julian's novel, Past Imperfect, was launched on Tuesday night. As the book is set in 1968 and 2008, we were invited to dress accordingly. In the end, his wife Emma had the best outfit of the night (as I knew she would), with a bright pink bobbed wig and a pink and black chequered PVC mini-dress. I wore a black and white pop-art dress, had my hair done up a la Amy Winehouse and stuck on huge false eyelashes that make one feel as if curtains are half-drawn across the eyes. There was a big turnout - Christopher Cazenove and his lovely girlfriend Isobel, Hermione Norris, Harriet Walter, Princess Michael of Kent, Freddie Windsor, Cristina Odone, Lady Apsley (who I had interviewed the day before for the Telegraph, oddly enough) and lots of old friends whom I hadn't seen for ages, which was a delight. Blue Strawberry did the yummy ca-naps, and we drank every drop of champagne. Afterwards, a few of us went to supper at the Sloane Square Hotel and I sat opposite J's publisher, apparently a legend of Wiedenfeld & Nicholson, and now semi-retired. He's just finishing a biog on Alan Clarke and I have a feeling he told me some really good stories but I can't remember them. I don't know what it is about me - whether my conscience is just too good for keeping secrets but the next day all I can ever remember is someone saying: "You mustn't repeat this to anyone but...." and then my mind goes blank. Damn.

Last night was upstairs in the "petting room" of new members' club at Quo Vadis. Huge sofas and tv, brown shrimps on toast and endless glasses of crisp white wine. We watched the election special and I wanted to throw my shoe at Jeremy Paxman and his patronising interview with Dizzee Rascal ("hip hop won the election"). JP said, "well, why don't you run for office then?" and SMIRKED. Git. But aside from that - total, absolute happiness at Obama's election. It's a JFK moment for our generation.

Owner Eddie Hart came up and had some fish pie with us and later, when we snuck out for a cig break, Eddie introduced me to my distant cousin Robert, Lord Fellowes. Isn't life marvellous?

Country Life bigs up da Mud

http://www.countrylife.co.uk/culture/article/279788/Mud_and_the_City.html

From mud to tarmac

A little bit ironic that as soon as my book is out - MUD & THE CITY: DOs AND DON'Ts FOR TOWNIES IN THE COUNTRY - we have decided to give up the country house. It was just too blimming cold (see blogs passim) and so expensive to heat (oil tank) that buying a new fur coat every week would have been cheaper (and warmer, probably as fur coats tend not to have draughts coming from above and below).

So. Now I'm hunkering down in the London flat and will continue to blog on City stuff. We're still venturing to the country now and then (staying tonight in the very lovely Stapleford Park hotel in Leics). I'll report back on any rustic sightings.

In the meantime, enjoy a couple of links and attachments I'm posting up here. And do get a copy of the book - at £9.99 it's a great stocking filler!!

Run, pheasant, run, run, run

The Man clipped the wings of a young cock pheasant last Saturday night and dutifully finished it off quickly (he doesn't shoot, so easier said than done). Got it home and plucked and gutted it immediately. I roasted it (salt and pepper, streaky bacon on the top, with potatoes and parsnips in the tin too) and served it up with buttered curly kale and steamed carrots. It was delicious. I don't particularly love pheasant, but as this was younger and hadn't been hung, the meat was plump and tasty. Roadkill, who'd have thunk?

Party on

We had the book launch last week - at Julie's in Holland Park. What you might call a rip-roaring success. All three authors launched in one night (Mud & The City, plus Cupboard Love by Laura Lockington and The Tail of Augustus Moon by Melanie Whitehouse) and the publisher, Book Guild, supplied plentiful bellinis and kir royales to keep us bubbling. Daily Mail gave it a mention on the Richard Kay page the next day. And now we just hope that word -of-mouth spreads the good, muddy word...

Radio ga-ga

Huge fun going on the radio yesterday. Only problem was I forgot to say why country people should buy the book. So just to clarify - the reason is: to give to your townie friends! Keep a copy in the spare bedroom so your townie cousins can fit in better and not step in the cowpats.

BBC Radio Suffolk

Very exciting. Am going on Luke Deal's show on BBC Radio Suffolk at 2.20pm today - will update later on how it went. Plus am being interviewed for East Anglia Daily News next week! Local author fame at last!!