[This interview originally appeared in Sussex Life in March 2004.
Words: Verity Smart]

After a film school education, Peter James began his career writing and producing films and television. He has since been involved in over forty movies as well as numerous television shows, including the recent Channel Four hit Bedsitcom. He is also joint managing director of Movision Entertainment, which last year produced seven movies; all shortly coming to UK cinemas, including Bridge of San Luis Rey starring Robert DeNiro, Kathy Bates, Harvey Keitel and Gabriel Byrne, A Different Loyalty starring Sharon Stone and Rupert Everett, and Head In The Clouds starring Penelope Cruz and Charlize Theron.

He is currently Executive Producer of Movision's latest production, Merchant of Venice, directed by Oscar winner Michael Radford and starring Al Pacino, Joseph Fiennes and Jeremy Irons. In addition to his film and television work, Peter also has a successful career as an international best-selling novelist. His novel Possession, published in 1987, was a number one bestseller in the UK and, like his nine subsequent novels, has been translated into 26 languages. He is currently working hard against a deadline on a new novel, to be published by Macmillan in Spring 2005.

Peter has also played a role in Sussex business life: the son of Cornelia James, the Brighton based glove manufacturer to HM Queen, he was a director of the family firm for a number of years, and then in 1993 he co-founded the very successful internet service provider, Pavilion Internet; Brighton's first connection to the Internet.

Three years ago, following the screening of the television mini-series of his novel Alchemist, Peter received a 'Public Awareness Of Science' award.

The next twelve months look packed for Peter. In addition to finishing his new novel, he is producing the film based on his novel Possession, which will be shot in North America, Prague and the UK, and he will also take an executive role in a further twelve film productions with Movision.

Here, Peter James shares with our readers his love for his home - county Sussex, and explains why he wouldn't live anywhere else in the UK:

How long have you lived in Sussex?

I was born in Hove, but spent much of my teens away at boarding school in Surrey, at Charterhouse, and then I lived in London, followed by North America for most of my twenties. I was lured back to Sussex in the late 1970s and have never wanted to live anywhere else in the UK since.

What is your idea of a perfect weekend in Sussex?

Walks on the Downs with the dogs, at least one hard game of tennis, getting through the entire pile of scripts I have to get through every weekend, and managing to read all the Sunday newspapers cover-to-cover.

If money were no object, where would you live in Sussex?

I would live where I live now. I have fabulous views in all directions and total privacy, yet I'm only three miles from Lewes, one of the greatest towns in Sussex, and I have absolutely delightful neighbours in all directions. There isn't anywhere I would rather have my home.

Where is the best pub/ bar in your area?

The only pub I go to regularly is Rose Cottage at Alciston, which has great food and I like the landlord.

Where would you choose to go for a special occasion in Sussex?

Hotel Du Vin has a great buzz, makes the best Vodka Martini I've had in Brighton, and has some great food; just avoid fresh asparagus if you see it on the menu, they served me the meanest portion I have ever seen.

What is the most underrated thing about Sussex?

When people talk about "rural England," a lot of them seem to forget just how rural and unspoiled most of Sussex is, particularly towards the eastern and western extremities. Stand on top of the South Downs and I defy anyone to show me a more beautiful view anywhere in the British Isles.

What's the best thing about Sussex?

Three things for me; Brighton, which could be an even greater city if the council stopped its pathetic war on the car, the Channel with its access to Europe, and Gatwick Airport with the access it opens to anywhere in the world.

And the worst?

Travelling to London is a joke. Brighton is a mere sixty miles from central London. The trains don't work, the roads are dreadful, and instead of improving either, all the government do is put up more and more speed cameras, and all Ken Livingstone does is make more bus lanes.

What shop could you not live without?

'Luigi' in Gardner Street, Brighton. Luigi has run what I think has been consistently the best men's clothes shop in Brighton for the past two decades, and his taste and judgement are impeccable. Clothes are important to my work, but I don't have the time or patience to spend hours shopping. I take the view that if I can't get what I want at Luigi, then it probably doesn't exist. I also could not live without my hairdresser, Ian Habbin. For years he came to my house. Now he has a hugely successful salon, The Point, in Trafalgar Street. He is far more than just a talented hairdresser; he has become a good and trusted friend.

What is your favourite view of Sussex?

The top of Firle Beacon, where you can see miles of coastline in one direction, and forty miles of countryside in the other. I could never tire of it.

What is your favourite building in Sussex and why?

St Dunstans. It is not merely a stunning Art Deco building, I am touched every time I pass it, by all it stands for; as a home for brave servicemen and women, old and young, who lost their sight serving their country. And there is something very moving about giving a home for the blind with one of the most spectacular views in all of Britain.

What book would you recommend to our readers?

Graham Greene's Brighton Rock. He captured the criminal underbelly of Brighton so brilliantly and so accurately, and the soul of the place. I have never read Brighton so vividly portrayed either before or since. It is a book I wish I could have written myself.

What is your favourite Sussex walk?

Ever since earliest childhood, I have walked the undercliff walk from either Black Rock or Rottingdean. Although we have stunning country walks, nowhere does it for me quite like that walk, with the danger of falling chalk ever present, and the tang of salt so rich you can lick it off the wind.

To what or to whom should there be a Sussex memorial?

Simon Fanshawe. I think Simon did an incredible job of passion and hard work in turning Brighton and Hove into a city; and with it, transforming it into the most fashionable place in the UK.

With whom would you most like to share a drink with and why?

My good friend and fellow author James Herbert. He has been one of a small handful of true "foul weather" friends, who has been there for me during difficult personal times in the past decade. And every time I am with him, I learn something new about the craft of writing!

To obtain further information about Movision, visit www.movision.co.uk

:: return to interviews index