You do very well at making historical figures feel ‘current’. Any tips for this?

After the research I have done I have come to the conclusion that people have not changed much over time.  Governance has changed, technology has changed but people are much the same.

For example, when faced with a financial crisis, Edward III would seek help, search for solutions. The language would be similar to that used in any boardroom today in organisations faced with similar difficulties .

The same is true of the other characters and circumstances. The incident where Piers gets the pretty girl to speak to John at Marmande, was based on an incident in a cocktail party during a conference in Leamington Spa.

This is really a repeat of what I said about characters above.  Every one I write about is based on someone I know or have known.

They may be faced with different circumstances but I know the people well enough to know how they would react.

I even have a model for Du Guesclin. I once worked, fortunately fairly briefly, for a really evil man. Having read Clair Wingfield’s comments that du Guesclin is in danger of becoming a pantomime villain, perhaps my model was not evil enough… felt like it at the time!