What made you decide to quit a successful writing career in Kensington for life in the French sticks?
Firstly, I was on the run from a failed relationship. Secondly, a sequence of random events led me to a little run-down house in rural France that practically had my name written on it.
Your books are about your life in rural France. Why do you think they have captured people’s imagination?
I think many people dream of starting over and the books show that if someone as clueless as me, a former fashion editor with zero practical skills, can move abroad and renovate a house alone then anyone can. Many people have emailed me to say that the books made them feel happy and inspired them to change their own lives in some way. One reviewer described Tout Sweet as ‘a spring clean for the soul’ and several of my French friends have said that it should be available on the French health service as a cure for depression, so I think people read it on many different levels.
What was the biggest sacrifice you made?
Giving up my flat in Kensington and daily cappuccinos from Pret a Manger (though I’ve noticed that their coffee isn’t as good as it used to be).
Toute Allure: Falling in Love in Rural France, your follow-up to Tout Sweet: Hanging Up My High Heels for a New Life in Rural France, is about how you found your dog Biff and your love affair with Portuguese neighbour, Luis. How does Luis feel about being written about?
Luis has always been very proud of the fact that I am a writer and Biff is delighted with all the extra attention he is getting as a result of Toute Allure.
Can you name-drop a few of your celebrity fans?
Only one so far that I’m aware of: a famous actress who lives in Kensington who bought the book from Waterstones and then returned to buy five more copies for her friends.
What do you miss about London when you’re in rural France?
Marks and Spencer food hall, Selfridges and John Lewis; and dinner in the Ladbroke Arms [54 Ladbroke Road, W11]. I really miss London restaurants as the food in my patch of rural France is borderline inedible.
Who has been the most inspiring person that you have ever interviewed?
Probably Tom Ford – very charismatic, very sussed, very entertaining and very, very good at everything he does, be it films, fashion or perfume.
What’s been your most memorable French experience?
My first Christmas in my French house. I cooked dinner for friends and we all sat around the log fire in the afternoon. It wasn’t all plain sailing – there were a few issues with the turkey – but it felt like a real turning point.
What has been your most memorable west London meal and why?
I’ve had so many memorable meals in west London but probably the most memorable were at the now defunct 192 restaurant in Notting Hill where I could be found most evenings during its heyday. I also used to like Maggie Jones – an ideal place for wiling away a rainy Sunday afternoon.
What are your hopes for the future?
To continue to live happily in France and to write more books. I’m currently working on book number three. I’d also like to see Tout Sweet and Toute Allure made into movies.
What’s your life motto?
Always listen to your heart rather than your head. And just do it.
