Bury Literature Festival Honorary Patron Nicola Upson and author Mandy Morton look back on the late PD James's extraordinary life and work, often inspired by the Suffolk landscape that she loved. The talk will be illustrated by Mandy’s audio archive, in which PD James discusses her writing and reads from some of her most popular novels. Both Nicola and Mandy enjoyed a long friendship with the author, and this very special event - marking Faber's reissue of the complete Adam Dalgliesh series - will give a unique insight into her creative process and legacy.
 
Nicola Upson was born in Suffolk and read English at Downing College, Cambridge. Her debut novel, An Expert in Murder, was the first in a series of crime novels to feature Josephine Tey – one of the leading authors of Britain’s Golden Age of crime-writing - and was dramatised for Radio 4. Nicola was shortlisted for the CWA Historical Dagger in 2018 for Nine Lessons, and her latest novel, Shot With Crimson, is the eleventh in the series. She is also the author of Stanley and Elsie, a standalone novel about the painter Stanley Spencer. Nicola's new book, The Christmas Clue, is a Golden Age mystery featuring the couple who invented Cluedo and will be published in September. She lives with her partner in Cambridge and Cornwall.
 
Mandy Morton began her professional life as a musician. More recently, she has worked as an arts journalist for national and local radio. She lives with her partner in Cambridge and Cornwall, where there is always a place for a long-haired tabby cat.