Your Questions

Q

In a recent post, you say that the Lowland Scots are decendents of the Britons. My understanding from the little I've read on the subject is that there was a significant Anglo element to the Lowland Scots, and that they represented Anglo Saxon communities that had remained independent politically from the English kingdoms. I'm not saying this is true, it's just something I thought I read somewhere. Isn't the Scots language related to English, and hence of Germanic origin? Can you shed some light? Also, can you tell me how the Picts fit into the picture?
Mike

Submitted June 7, 2005

A

The lowland Scots were the British (ie Welsh) in the years following the Saxon invasion. Y Gododdin, a great Welsh poem describing a raid on the Saxons - the raiders went from what is now Scotland to what is now Catterick - was written in Welsh and written in Scotland. An enormous amount of mingling went on after that - with the Scottii (originally from Ireland) and the Saxons and the Danes and just about anyone else who could get in on the act. I suppose most Scots would claim that Gaelic is the Scottish language, and that is related to Erse (Irish), Welsh and Breton, i.e. the language of the Britons. Lowland Scots is almost entirely English, of course. the Picts, so far as I understand it, were the original inhabitants of the far north of Scotland and had their own language, about which there is much debate - whether it was Celtic or, as some scholars maintain, not even part of the Indo-European group (Basque is one such). That language has vanished, and the Picts were assimilated (polite word) by the Scots, the Danes, the Norsemen and anyone else who passed that way.

Q

Mr Cornwell I apologise if you've been asked this question many times before but, are there any plans to shoot further Sharpe novels? I remember reading a review on one of the books that is set a decade or so after Waterloo where Sharpe and Harper go to Chile?? or another South American country. Seeing as that Sean Bean and Daragh O'Malley would be ten years older it would be great. By the way, my 10 and 14 year old sons are Sharpe fans now. Mark Wells

are you going to make any more films of the Sharpe books? we have all of them so far and think they are fantastic, we watch them quite often. Lynda

Sir, I am interested to learn more about an upcoming Sharpe TV series based on India. As a fan of your books and someone of Indian descent I am excited by the possibility. I've been an avid reader of your books for your many years. I actually had the opportunity of attending a book signing of yours in LA several years back. It was the first book signing event that I had ever attended (or even ever thought about going to one). I found the discussion to be very interesting, which made the long trip in LA traffic worthwhile. I remember buying your book at the bookstore then getting in the long line for you to personalize the book. I still laugh at all of the people who just wanted you to sign and date a stack of your books so they could sell them that night on Ebay. Overall, I thought the best part was the discussion on how the books came about and would recommend the experience to others if granted the opportunity. M. Patel

Dear Bernard, firstly I shall fall into line with everyone else's opening phrases and thankyou for writing such an astonishing and exciting series of books. I am doing history at university, (try as I might there is no Napolionic period to study), anyway I heard a rumour the other day that in autumn a Sharpe film will be made in India, (Sharpe's Challenge I think), just wondered if this was true, and if it is (this is far fetched and unlikely I know) any chance I can play (I am a thesbien of sorts) one of the many nameless soldiers?, of which I presume there will be plenty, kind regards Chris

Submitted June 7, 2005

A

I've asked the 'expert' on all things Sharpe (Chris Clarke at the Sharpe Appreciation Society) to fill us in on these rumours and here is what she had to say "the news so far is that the new film will be called 'Sharpe's Challenge', will be set in India in 1817 and hopefully will be in production back end of this year. The producers and director Tom Clegg have just returned from doing a recce in Rajastan, India to look over locations etc., they are very optimistic about filming although nothing is still confirmed. The only other news is that both Sean Bean and Daragh O'Malley have been signed up to appear in the new film if it goes ahead." So there you have it - and as far as the casting for extras? Alas, I have no say in the matter, sorry!

Q

Dear Mr Cornwell, There is a passage in Enemy of God, the excellent second novel of Arthur that seems to suggest that todays 'Black Pudding' is descended from the secret ceremonies associated with the worship of Mithras. Halfway through the book, Derfel is shocked to hear that the ever-mischievous Merlin knows all about how Mithraists mix bulls blood with fat and oats to make puddings to eat. Is there any truth in this or just a smidge of artistic license on your part? My full English breakfast my never be the same again! Warm regards, Martin Luck (London)

Submitted June 7, 2005

A

I think there is truth in it - certainly part of the Mithraic ritual was the consumption of blood, but I doubt they invented the Black Pudding (whoever did should be honoured through eternity). From very early times it was customary to bleed an animal (I think at slaughter time) into a bucket of oats, and from there it isn't far to your breakfast.

Q

Hi, I am a great fan of your books, The Grail Quest series being my favourites, but my wife hates it when I start one as she can't get a sensible word out of me for a couple of days thereafter! I am also particularly fond of Patrick O'Brian's Aubury/Maturin novels for, while they do not have the pace of your books, over the series it is impossible not to feel as though you had been allowed to vicariously live a fantastic life that modern suburbia (or wherever) simply does not permit. Now to my question (it had to happen eventually!). I once read a glowing recommendation you had written of that series of books whose success is undeniable, but later, on a radio programme you said that the language of the day (Give you joy, and so forth) would be difficult to sell to a modern readership. I just wondered why you thought that what worked for Aubury wouldn't work for Sharpe? With kindest regards, JKM

Submitted June 7, 2005

A

Why don't I write like Patrick O'Brian? Not clever enough, I suppose, and unlike him I try very hard to smooth the reading - no obstacles. It's simply a different approach. He believed that books should convey lifestyle even, I suspect, at the expense of story. I go the other way.

Q

This is a silly question but perhaps one that will reveal a lot of queries. In my opinion, the problem with your stories is that there are lots of different series and not enough Bernard Cornwell to write them all. People inevitably have favourites, so one of the problems is people who like series such as Sharpe are spoiled in books, whilst Starbuck followers are starved. So let's say somebody managed to create two Bernard Cornwell clones. And thus, there was a lot more opportunity to have more Bernard Cornwell Books available. So the question is, which books would crop up, considering there's a lot more time? Would you take the chance to write Starbuck (I haven't got round to reading them yet, but I know from this website lots of people have been waiting!) again? Would you just concentrate on one series? Like Uhtred chronicles? Or would you live you to expectations and write about Robin Hood (which I believe is not far off from your destiny)? Thank you for your time. =) James Trethowan

Submitted June 7, 2005

A

One is enough (ask my wife). I suppose what would be written would be what is going to be written, but if I had twice as much time then yes, I would restart the Starbuck series, though for the moment I'm concentrating pretty hard on the Alfred books.

Q

Hi. I have a quick question for you. Do you think you'll ever write a novel series based during the American Revolutionary War? Brian Denney

Submitted June 7, 2005

A

I don't think there'll be a series, though I am planning a single further novel - whether I'll ever get round to writing it is another matter . . . .

Q

Hello again Bernard, I have asked you in the past whether you plan to write about Robin Hood (as have one or two others). Can I ask, do you believe Robin Hood existed? Or is he a sort of amalgam of several folk heroes? And what about the legend of Herne the Hunter? Just curious what you think. Thanks! Lindsey

Submitted June 3, 2005

A

Did Robin Hood exist? I suspect so, and I suspect his legend got tangled over the years so that it would be very difficult to discover the true Robin Hood, but that said, I'm no expert. My apprehension of it is that he existed fairly soon after the Conquest, maybe the 12th century, but didn't emerge into wider view until the 14th century - probably as a celebration of the emergence of the English archer. Herne the Hunter I know even less about - except that he's the English representation of a European myth about the spectral night-time hunter who haunts the woods with his ghostly hounds . . which is splendid stuff, and probably related to the Green Man myths and all sorts of other stories which, alas, fade fast.

Q

Dear Mr Cornwell, I love ALL your books, of course. I was just wondering what you thought of the Flashman chronicles, and if you have seen this quote by Flashman's father""...damn son-of-bitch was risen from the ranks thankee'!" Rifle man Richard 'bloody' Sharpe damned dangerous fellow - what? Damn his eyes, just the type of strong, bold and brave fellow who'd be foolish enough to drag you off on a dangerous and deadly mission and no doubt get you your head blown off in the process! Keep well clear of the Impertinent son-of-a-whore, unless you what to end up in the thick of it in the front lines. Flashy would rather stay back home with his feet up at the club nursing a fine Brandy rather than be dragged onto ... or any where near a battle with one resembling that dangerous, fool hardy disrespectful bastard Richard Sharpe! "...damned Brave, or a complete fool, but bloody Resourceful fellow" Captain 'Buck' Flashman, (father Harry Flashman) Waterloo 1815 Thank you, I hope you never stop writing. Also I was reading a biography of Sharpe by Richard Moore, he says Sharpe died in 1860. Is this your view or was it just his using "license"? ALSO, Is it a deliberate device were Sharpe says in The Ransom that he would hate his son to be a cavalry man, and is in all the books slagging them off and then Patrick becomes one? Thanks, Teddy Chabo

Submitted June 3, 2005

A

What do I think of the Flashman Books? I adore them. George MacDonald Fraser and I did a gig together last week at the Hay Literary Festival and we cautiously agreed that Sharpe and Flashman would like each other, though Sharpe would be well advised to lock up his daughters before they met. I'm sure, though, that your thoughts from 'Buck' encapsulate the truth. The good news, though, is that there's a brand new Flashman just published (Flashman on the March) and it's a terrific read!

The date of Sharpe's death? I've never thought about it, and never offered a date to anyone, so any guess is just that, a guess.

And about the cavalry? Yes, it is deliberate.

Q

Will there be a complete set of hardcover editions of the Sharpe series? I would buy it today.......William Bauer

Submitted June 3, 2005

A

It wouldn't happen until the series is done (if it happens at all) - and the series isn't finished yet!

Q

Sir, Have very much enjoyed The Last Kingdom, and am very much anticipating part two! In the meantime, I read the Archer's Tale, loved it and ran out to get Vagabond. Loved it! I thoroughly enjoyed it. However, I have a couple questions: Robin Hood - Vagabond is set in 1347. I was under the impression that Robin Hood did not come "onto the scene" until the 1370's? Perhaps I am mistaken? The Scot's & the use of blue "paint." Did the Scot's (or Picts) actually do this? My HS History teacher taught us that the Scots did this, and I have seen Braveheart. What is your take? Thank you very much, and keep up the excellent work! Sincerely, Lawrence Pembroke Philadelphia, PA USA

Submitted June 3, 2005

A

Robin Hood - I suspect he was on the scene much, much earlier - the stories, after all, set him in the very early 13th Century, but they could be even older. You're right that Chaucer mentions him in 1374, but that isn't his first time in literature - so far as I know that occurred in 1304 (in a manuscript called the Registrum Premonstratense) - and I could have missed an earlier mention. But certainly we have evidence, from 1304, that his name was known and we must assume that the mention represents a vast corpus of uncollected oral traditions. There's a good collection of lore about him in The Legend of Robin Hood by Richard Rutherford-Moore, published in 1998 by Capall Ban Publishing (Freshfields, Chieveley, Berks, RG20 8TF).

Blue paint? I don't know! We do know the Britons used woad to make a blue-dye with which they painted their faces before battle - Julius Caesar tells us that - but how effective was it? I've never done the experiment, but suspect they ended up looking as if they'd had a very bad night on the bottle. The Britons, of course, became the lowland Scots (Glasgow, among many other Scottish place names, is derived from Welsh), so it's possible that the tradition continued, though I doubt it went on into mediaeval times, and we have no evidence that the Scots (i.e. the highlanders) ever did it. As for 'Braveheart', the history in that film is so bad that it really can't be taken as a source for anything other than the fertility of Hollywood's imagination.