ANCIENT EGYPT SERIES NOVEL

We’re at the UCL Medical School in London. Historian Michael Wood is due to give a lecture, with a new film on Alexander-the-Great.

His groundbreaking series In the Footsteps of Alexander-the-Great started a race to make a feature film in Hollywood.

I have been adopted by some wonderful ladies, whom I dub the Golden Girls. We’ve known each other for years, and they are incredibly knowledgeable and fun.

For now, we’re in student accommodation. So far, it isn’t that great! Ina has a flood of water in her quarters, toilet and shower facilities are shared, and there’s mould in the fridge.

There are two pubs at either end of the street. Both will be filled with drunken students, fighting at 2am.

But it’s exciting. In the morning, after a few hours’ sleep (the students), we head off to the lecture. We join a group outside the hall on a sunny London morning.

And there he is. Well over six and half feet tall, clad in a blue suit, the historian is chatting to ticket holders. Some people have “star quality”, and Michael Wood is definitely one of them.

The lecture does not disappoint. It is dazzling. What is confirmed is that Alexander-the-Great followed a faultline of war, which, in many ways, still exists today.

Following in the king’s footsteps cannot be done by the average person, due to the danger. However, Alexander ‘s journey, now taken by a professional historian, can perhaps tell us something about this ancient warrior. And perhaps, more than simply where he went.

For instance, during Alexander’s campaign in south-west Turkey, there is a famous story of where the sea is supposed to have bowed to him. The place where the incident is thought to have occurred is, in fact, choppy and cold. The waves are high when the tide is in. Like his men, Alexander could not swim. His height is not known, but he is supposed to have been short.

If he and the Macedonians had been trudging in this particular place, the water would have come up to their chests for most of the day, and sometimes, over their heads.

From this one instance, it has been pointed out that Alexander did not always think things out, he was determined, and, most important of all, he was lucky. These are characteristics of his which are often at the fore of his battles.

I think it has to be remembered that, while he was a tactical genius, Alexander was also very young. Many of his qualities, quirks and characteristics are typical of young men. Those of you who are parents will be able to relate. Perhaps you are a young man, which is why Alexander holds great appeal. Perhaps you are a young woman and have different reasons.

The attractiveness of youth is part of the Alexander mystique and has, in part, turned him into a legendary figure.

What does reveal itself in the new footage Mr. Wood shows us, is that this is a tale of war. We watch him in parts of Iraq, which one cannot access without special permission, military escorts or a flak jacket!

We end the day with dinner. The Golden Girls drink Cointreau. We’ve taken notes. There are things writers need to think about. The problem of Alexander is one of centuries. No one has been able to pin him down.

It is because everything happened long ago, in a culture which no longer exists, and with people, whose mental and emotional responses we would not understand, even if we had a time machine.

As the academics continue their search for the real Alexander, I approach his story as a novelist.

While some travelling is involved, the journey mainly occurs inside the writer’s’ head. In fiction, one has creative flexibility. And a discovery writer never knows what is coming next. Ask Stephen King!

Characters in one’s mind aside, the next step is to take another trip. This time it will be outside of England.

Above Photograph: Michael Wood © Sharon Janet Hague