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I just stumbled over a question that made me almost swallow my tongue! Post Date: 03 Jul, 2006 Q: Dear Bernard, I wonder could you tell me in which Sharpe novel does his friend Patrick Harper first appear? Thanks. Paul

A: Sharpe's Rifles.

NONONONO!!!!! He is mentioned in Sharpe's Prey. We do not hear a lot about him but the commanding officer of the rifles (Don't really remember if it is Warren Dunnet at that time?) Says something(don't remember the exact words) to a Private Harper... Just a little hint from a fan. Chris

Dear Mr Cornwell Please allow me to add my praise to the others who have already done so. The Lords of the North was truly ejoyable made more so by me reading it straight after The Pale Horseman. Thank you for making my daily commute to London bearable. You said at the end of The Lords of the North that you were related to previous rulers of Bamburgh Castle. I assume therefore that you managed to trace your family tree that far back. If so what a wonderful discovery for you! My own efforts in tracing my family have proved far less exciting. Thanks once again and I look forward to next instalment of Uthred!!!! Yours, Ian Coutts

I would just like to tell you how much I have enjoyed your historical novel, especially the latest about Alfred. I find the characters so believable and find I can picture every aspect of the people and places. Also your knowledge of fighting methods brings the full atmostphere of the battles to life. The reader could almost be there. By the way - are you related to Patricia Cornwell. I haven't seen that spelling of Cornwell anywhere else? Best regards, David Ayre

In a posting dated 01 Jul, 2006 the questions was: Dear Sir, In the movie Sharpe's Rifles after being saved by the Spanish and they are in their makeshift camp, is Harper playing a tin whistle and what songs does he play?

Your answer was: Harper on the tin whistle? I'm afraid I don't know, and I fear I'm too lazy to find my DVD and fast forward through to discover the scene, when I'd probably not recognise the tunes anyway. So what to do? Does anyone out there know the answer? You could try asking the Sharpe Appreciation Society website (see the link to it on the Sharpe books page of this website) to see if any of their members know (they know an awful lot, more than me) If I happen to watch the video then I'll keep an ear open. Sorry to be so unhelpful.

He does indeed play the tin whistle. The song he plays is called "Salamanca" Hope I was helpful. Chris

Dear Mr Cornwell, Just to say many thanks for the hours of enjoyment that your writing has given me. Keep going please, I've a few years left to enjoy some more of your books. Good Luck to you and your family. Regards B.W.

Lords of the North... Fantastic. In my opinion the Alfred books are the best since The Warlord Chronicles and Stonehenge, which I loved. Thanks Mr Cornwell. David Wilcock

Hi Bernard I just wanted to say thank you for such wonderful reading. I'm in Australia and the Sharpe Series was playing on cable on UKTV. My husband is English and suggested we watch it as he has fond memories of the series. I liked it so much and was very curious to read the books. Hence I bought the whole Sharpe Series and am thoroughly enjoying them. I've also read nearly all your other books now and I can honestly say the best books I have read in a long time was the Arthur Books. I just thought Derfel was a fantastic character and I was really sad when I finished reading them as I didn't want the story to be over. My husbands favourites were the Grail Quest series. We've both just read the Pale Horseman and can't wait to read the next one in the series. We've just had a baby and even though we are really busy when we do have time we snatch up your books and they really help us to have some chill out time and relax. We tell as many people as we can about your books. Thank you very much once again and we wish you all the best in the future and can't wait for any new releases. Cheers, Nicole and Allan Gough. Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

Congratulations on the OBE award! I am a fan of your Sharpe novels and have enjoyed reading them for many years. The Sharp TV Series on BBC America is an excellent adaptation of your books. Keep them coming! Steve (Fellow Brit living in Bellevue, NE)

My hat off to you sir! I 1st read the Starbuck chronicles 8yrs ago and loved them. I really wish you could finish this saga. The Arhur books were nice but not really my cup of tea, but I read them waiting for more on Starbuck. Recently my father and brother read 13 of the Sharpe books and I just finished those. I love the battles and his ultimate victory over his adverseries each time. My only objection is the taking of the Lord's name is vain, but I do love your books. Glenn Rovira

Hi Bernard, congratulations on receiving the OBE, very well done, you deserve it for the incredible history class you provide with every book you publish. My wife and I visted Spain and Portugal this past May and as part of the fun, at least my fun time, (she didn't seem to complain about waiting in the car), I scrambled over some of the battlefields, battlement sites and cities, mentioned in your Sharpe's series, I never would have found myself in some of those places without Sharpe as my guide. Julian Paget's "W's Pen War" helped a little as well. After returning home I found a copy of "The Sharpe Companion" by Mark Adkin. (Both books a must for the dedicated - Between these two books and visting the sites I am now getting a better picture of what obstacles have been presented to you in writting these delightful novels. If you ever come to Victoria BC, (I think I read somewhere you have a relative here), please have your publisher's arrange a forum, reading or whatever, possible like the one you had recently in Britain this past May. (Lots of old warriors out here) We would love to attend. Waiting patiently for "Fury" Cheers, Richard Severs