Kate Mosse
Chichester-born Kate, 61, is the best-selling author of The Joubert Family Chronicles and the multimillion-selling Languedoc Trilogy
What was your first TV memory?
Bill And Ben The Flowerpot Men, in black and white! I loved them. I remember sitting on my mum’s lap to watch them. I look back now and think, oh my lord. Little
Weed was in charge of course.
Who was your first TV crush?
I’m afraid it’s predictable – David Cassidy on The Partridge Family. His single was the first I ever bought, How Can
I Be Sure… He had a bit more appeal than Steptoe And Son!
What was your first TV appearance?
I’d been on Newsnight and interviewed on shows, but The Readers And Writers Roadshow on BBC Four was the first show I hosted. We travelled around the country and I interviewed three people a show, including Margaret Attwood and Ian Rankin, so I had a lot of books to read.
What is your favourite current show?
I’m hopeless, I’m so behind everyone else. I’ve only just binge-watched Killing Eve. Jodie Comer and Sandra Oh were spell-binding, really interesting female characters.
Which TV show would you take to a desert island?
Either Grey’s Anatomy for its incredible narrative structure or every episode of Top Of The Pops, fast forwarding to avoid Jimmy Savile.
What TV show would you like to put out of its misery?
Reality TV shows. They’re based on cruelty, ridicule and often Lord Of The Flies. We need more kindness in our world rather than stirring up differences.
Guiltiest TV pleasure?
I watch snooker, partly as I’m caring for my mother. It’s very restful, the hushed commentary. It takes me back to watching Pot Black with my dad.
What are you up to at the moment?
I’m about to start a new career and take my first one-woman show on the road. It’s fun, full of crazy facts about the great women in history we never hear about.
Kate Mosse will be at theatres around the UK from February 28 – April 12 with Warrior Queens & Quiet Revolutionaries: How Women (Also) Built
The World. For tickets see kate.mosse.co.uk/ events