When your book comes to life...sort of

 In just the last week, I've seen pictures of two things that could have come straight from Tilda's world. 

The first is this amazing picture, posted by a friend of mine 'Down-under'. 

Ronnie does tours of her local area, and this is a shot of the ruins of a guest house - Chateau Napier, in Leura - which was destroyed in bushfire, 1957.

But I looked at it and - assuming you've read Tilda and the Mines of Pergatt - I saw the doorway in the forest that I'd imagined and written about. Admittedly, my invented doorway also has a door within it, but it was exactly how I imagined the setting...

The second time Tilda's world came into sharp focus was when the National Trust magazine dropped through my letterbox. Mr Squidge was flicking through and I nearly jumped out of my chair when I saw this inside;

Now, I don't know about you, but my first thought was - Lady Duska! Pergatt's colour is green, and the dress is covered in gemstones...

I read the article about this dress and, it's even more impressive than gems - all those glittery 'gems' are the wing cases of irridescent beetles. And it was made for a theatre production of Macbeth - this is Lady Macbeth's gown.

I do so love it, when you find something real that could fit so well into the fantasy... Don't you?