Peter Mayle
The year in Provence phenomenon
The English writer Peter Mayle moved to Provence with his wife in the late 1980’s, after a career in advertising, in order to write a novel. They bought an old house in the Luberon at Ménerbes which required so much attention that he was unable to start the novel. However, on his publisher’s suggestion he wrote a short book about his experiences restoring the house using some very colourful local tradesmen.
The rest is history – the book A Year in Provence became an international best seller and made him a millionaire. Less a narrative than state of mind, the book fired people’s imaginations and he became a one-man tourist attraction eventually having to sell the property to escape. A succession of other best sellers, including Toujours Provence and Encore Provence, soon followed and then came some novels including A Good Year which was later made into a film starring Russell Crowe and directed by Ridley Scott.
After spending four year’s in the US Mayle returned to his beloved Luberon where he continued to write until his death in 2018. His last work, The Diamond Caper (2015) is set, where else, but in Provence.
Peter Mayle can be seen talking about the filming of his novel A Good Year here.