Being There

My fascination with Peter Sellers has a lot to do with him looking like my father.

It's something to do with the forehead. And- harder to pin down- with the way he carries himself.

There are shots in Being There where it's definitely my father up there on screen.

Being There is one of my favourite movies. I watched it again last night. Sellers made a lot of cruddy films- many of them cruddier than they need have been because of his appalling behaviour on and off the set (Blake Edwards reckons he was certifiably insane)- but Being There is immaculate.

Trilogies

What is it about trilogies?

Why does it feel awkward and unsatisfactory to have two books in a series, but supremely right to have three?

I've written two Purchas novels now, but I'm not going to be satisfied until I've finished the third.