HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING?
I think I can only answer that question after I’ve been fully through the experience. I can then compare it to being published and marketed by a regular publisher. One thing I can say it is far more work for the author publishing independently. The competition out there, now than anyone and everyone can write and publish a book, is intense. But I’m enjoying the process.
I think I can only answer that question after I’ve been fully through the experience. I can then compare it to being published and marketed by a regular publisher. One thing I can say it is far more work for the author publishing independently. The competition out there, now than anyone and everyone can write and publish a book, is intense. But I’m enjoying the process.
WHAT’S THE REASON FOR YOUR LIFE? HAVE YOU FIGURED OUT YOUR REASON FOR BEING HERE YET?
That’s a deep question – the age-old conundrum: Why are we here? What are we doing? What does it all mean? Even the greatest minds in our world cannot agree on this. And I certainly haven’t worked out the answer. I turn to the Monty Python team and their hilarious movie, “The Meaning of Life” So, rather than speculate on the many hypotheses put forward by philosophers, priests and people who think they know all the answers, I would prefer to watch “The Meaning of Life” and accept that no one has a clue why we are here and what we are doing.
DO YOU KNOW YOUR NEIGHBOURS?
If I stayed in one place long enough to meet them I am sure I would get to know my neighbours. The trouble is, with my wandering spirit I am travelling too much and too often to get to meet the people who live nearest me. I always intend to knock on their doors when I return from my travels but then put off doing it with the excuse that I will probably be leaving again in a few weeks.
WHAT ARE YOU MOST PROUD OF ACCOMPLISHING SO FAR IN YOUR LIFE?
The obvious answer is that I am most proud of my three children. But as far as professional achievements are concerned, I am proud that my first book, “An Affair of State” became the number one best-seller. I am proud of having worked in Bosnia and Croatia during the war. And I am most proud of something that happened while I was working there. In one of the camps outside Zagreb I found a young Bosnian refugee girl, Merima, who had lost her family after intense bombing of her village and was now completely alone. It became my mission to find her parents. Somehow, after a couple of months intense investigation in Croatia, Bosnia and then the UK, I managed to locate them and her sister in Hertfordshire. Her father had been medi-vaced to hospital having suffered severe injuries in the bombing incident close to their house in Banja Luka. I visited them at the hospital north of London, showed them a photo of Merima I had taken in the camp and promised them I would bring her to England when I returned from my next visit to Croatia.
I knew I shouldn’t have made such a rash promise and regretted it immediately. I knew it was an almost impossible task. Six weeks later I went back to the refugee camp in Croatia and, to my horror, found it had been bulldozed and the refugees moved on to other camps. As I sat down and sobbed through frustration and despair, Merima suddenly appeared out of the rubble. She told me through my interpreter that she had hidden when the Croatian police loaded everyone onto the trucks. We hugged ferociously. I handed her a letter from her parents and a postcard of a London bus from her little sister. I then hid Merima under sleeping bags in the back of my truck and transported her across seven borders and into the UK to reunite her with her family. It was a perilous and terrifying journey. Merima didn’t speak a word of English and was very frightened. I knew we could have been turned around at any of the borders had she been discovered. And, in the UK, I could have faced a lengthy prison term for “kidnapping and smuggling” a minor into the country. But we were extremely fortunate. And, after a harrowing trip of several days I managed to reunite Merima with her family. That was probably the proudest moment of my life.
I knew I shouldn’t have made such a rash promise and regretted it immediately. I knew it was an almost impossible task. Six weeks later I went back to the refugee camp in Croatia and, to my horror, found it had been bulldozed and the refugees moved on to other camps. As I sat down and sobbed through frustration and despair, Merima suddenly appeared out of the rubble. She told me through my interpreter that she had hidden when the Croatian police loaded everyone onto the trucks. We hugged ferociously. I handed her a letter from her parents and a postcard of a London bus from her little sister. I then hid Merima under sleeping bags in the back of my truck and transported her across seven borders and into the UK to reunite her with her family. It was a perilous and terrifying journey. Merima didn’t speak a word of English and was very frightened. I knew we could have been turned around at any of the borders had she been discovered. And, in the UK, I could have faced a lengthy prison term for “kidnapping and smuggling” a minor into the country. But we were extremely fortunate. And, after a harrowing trip of several days I managed to reunite Merima with her family. That was probably the proudest moment of my life.
WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVOURITE QUALITY ABOUT YOURSELF?
My least favourite quality about myself is that I am probably too self-critical. At least that is what my children tell me so I guess it must be true.
WHAT SOCIAL ISSUES INTEREST YOU THE MOST?
I am interested in several current issues - Immigration Reform, Marriage Equality and Gun Control. I worked for the Obama reelection campaign because I firmly believe his views on all three of these very important issues are the right views. Congress and the American people should embrace them.
WHO DO YOU ADMIRE?
I admire Michelle Obama because she has somehow managed to combine being a good, caring mother with the work of being First Lady. She also put her career on hold in order to support her husband which, to some, may not be considered a strength but I believe it must have taken a great deal of thought and self-sacrifice to come to that decision. I think she has been a positive force, both inside the White House and in her work as First Lady.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE PLACE IN THE ENTIRE WORLD?
I have travelled around the world and visited or lived in numerous countries. My favourite has to be Newfoundland, which I believe is Canada’s best-kept secret. Apart from the hundreds of whales and millions of seabirds who make it their temporary home and fishing ground every summer, the people are incredibly friendly, you can leave the doors of your house and car unlocked and your children can still play safely in the street. The air is clean, the light is stunning and the landscapes are spectacular. And , best of all, I have found it is a great place to write.
WHAT WOULD YOU LOVE TO PRODUCE IN YOUR LIFE?
I don’t actually have any great ambitions. I have achieved what I wanted to achieve from an early age – a successful book. And, since then, I have not really set myself any other goals except to enjoy my life to the full. And, for me, that means travelling to my favourite places, spending time with friends and family and occasionally directing a play.
HOW MANY FRIENDS DOES A PERSON NEED?
I think the answer to how many friends one needs differs with each individual. Some may need many friends. Others feel content and fulfilled with just a handful. With my wandering lifestyle I fall into the latter category. I have a few extremely good friends who I can depend on and who can depend on me.
WHAT IS YOUR NEXT PROJECT?
My next project is a filmscript of my book. I am finding it quite a daunting project but am being encouraged by my son, who is a producer, and my nephew who is a successful movie star. So, hopefully, between the three of us we can make this happen next year.
DO YOU FIND TIME TO READ?
I used to be an avid reader with an unquenchable thirst for books. I would read everything. Today I am more discerning. I choose my books carefully and often read them two or three times. I love reading. I love being absorbed and carried away by a story, by its characters and by its plot. And I love dissecting books. I wish I had written more books myself for others to enjoy.
WHAT MAKES YOU ANGRY?
Lack of courtesy, compassion, tolerance and consideration make me angry. I was brought up to be respectful, to be considerate and to be courteous. So it upsets me when I see others who don’t follow these rules of civility. Life would be so much more pleasant for everyone if people could only respect, understand, tolerate and consider others. I know this is an old-fashioned view but it the code I live by. It doesn’t cost anything to be nice to be others.
ARE YOU A CITY SLICKER OR A COUNTRY LOVER?
I love the excitement of the city – the galleries, the museums, the cinemas, the theatre, the shops, the crowds – the drama, the vitality. But I also love the solitude, the silence and the beauty of the countryside. I am fortunate that I can split my life so that I can appreciate both. I travel between Costa Rica, Los Angeles, London and Newfoundland. I have, I believe, the best of both worlds.
I love the excitement of the city – the galleries, the museums, the cinemas, the theatre, the shops, the crowds – the drama, the vitality. But I also love the solitude, the silence and the beauty of the countryside. I am fortunate that I can split my life so that I can appreciate both. I travel between Costa Rica, Los Angeles, London and Newfoundland. I have, I believe, the best of both worlds.
"How the English Establishment Framed Stephen Ward" is a major expose of a government cover-up that has lasted half a century. It is a powerful story of sexual compulsion, political malice and ultimate betrayal. A number-one bestseller when it came out in 1987 under its original title, "An Affair of State", the book reveals never-before-heard testimony that has been uncovered by the authors in the years since the scandal broke. Using startling new evidence, including Ward’s own unpublished memoirs and hundreds of interviews with many who, conscience-stricken, have now spoken out for the first time, this important account rips through a half-century cover-up in order to show exactly why the government, the police forces, the Judiciary and the security forces decided to frame Stephen Ward.
Stephen Ward is now the subject of an upcoming Andrew Lloyd-Weber musical and this book offers a wider perspective on its complex, central character as well as a broader insight into one of the greatest scandals of the past 100 years. As the authors’ research reveals, Ward’s “trial of the century” was caused by an unprecedented corruption of justice and political malice which resulted in an innocent man becoming a scapegoat for those who could not bear to lose power. This is an epic tale of sex, lies, and governmental abuse whose aftermath almost brought down the government and shook the American, British, and Soviet espionage worlds to their core. With its surprising revelations and meticulous research, Ward’s complete story can finally be told.
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Genre – Politics, Espionage, Scandal
Rating – PG-16
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