Acclaimed author Kate Mosse is celebrating the 20th anniversary of bestselling book Labyrinth with a 24-date theatre tour, including numerous Midlands stop-offs along the way. Titled Labyrinth Live: Unlocking The Secrets Of The Labyrinth, her one-woman show uses music, imagery and film to share the inspiration behind her story. 

What’s On recently caught up with her to find out more... 

What inspired you to take your Labyrinth show on the road, Kate?

2025 is the 20th anniversary of the UK publication of Labyrinth, and it is a book that changed my life. It meant it was possible for me to be a full-time writer. Nobody becomes a novelist thinking: ‘This is how I’ll make a living.’ I was already in my 40s and had published four books before, but I was lucky. Labyrinth became a global super-seller and has now sold something in the region of eight million copies in 37 different languages. So, I want to say ‘thank you’ to all the readers that made this happen and celebrate the anniversary with them.

What format will the show take?

It’s an immersive, atmospheric, dramatic two-hour piece of theatre - as opposed to a book talk - with lights, music, video, film, special effects, props and photographs.

With Unlocking The Secrets Of The Labyrinth, from the minute the audience comes into the auditorium, they will feel a shiver down their spine because they will feel they are in medieval France. I hope they will experience that sense of the mysteries hidden in the landscape of southwest France; they will hear the music of the cloister and the sounds of the Pyrenees.

I’ll be sharing my inspirations behind the story of writing the book - from the very first moment I set foot in Carcassonne, in winter 1989, to the inspirational moments of climbing the mountain of Montségur in the Pyrenees six or seven years later and coming face to face with the image of the woman who would become my lead character, Alaïs, though not knowing who she was. I'll be talking about how the novel took shape, how my characters came to life, the beautiful landscape of Languedoc. We’ll show a few of the pictures from the filming of the Labyrinth mini-series in France and South Africa, starring Tom Felton (Harry Potter, Planet Of The Apes), Vanessa Kirby (The Crown, Mission Impossible), Jessica Brown Findlay (Downton Abbey), and Sebastian Stan (Captain America).

What other areas will you be covering?

As well as the back story, I’ll shine a spotlight on the real history that underpins the novel: the Nazi Grail hunters and Grail legends; the history of the Christian sect called the Cathars - who they were, why they were persecuted, and how they were completely wiped out; labyrinths themselves, which became very significant in Christianity in medieval Europe; hieroglyphs and ancient Egypt, and the links between those ancient religions and the Cathar religion. I've also dug out plenty of original research which didn’t find its way into the novel, so audiences will get a few unique fragments of historical insight - not least, the story of the final downfall of the Cathars (which happens after my novel has ended). In other words, it will be a mixture of familiar and brand new; perfect for anyone who loved the novel and would like to know more. 

What do you love about performing live?

It was wonderful to start a new career as a performer in my 60s! I was brought up by my wonderful parents always to have a go, so when I was approached about doing Warrior Queens And Quiet Revolutionaries as a show, I thought; ‘Well, what have you got to lose!’ I was excited by the challenge - terrified, too, of course. I do a lot of public speaking and hosting of events, but a show is utterly different. When you are giving a book talk or a lecture, you stand at a lectern for 45 minutes, or are interviewed by someone else, then take questions, and it's done. A theatre show is completely different, and there is so much that could go wrong:  lighting cues, sound cues, finding yourself in the wrong part of the stage, dropping a prop… 

How were you before your first-ever show?

I'm confident and experienced, I’m used to standing up in front of hundreds -  sometimes thousands - of people to give a speech. But, when the music started for the first preview of Warrior Queens, I was standing in the wings, and for the first time in my career, I thought: ‘I can’t go on, I can't do this.’ But then, of course, the music finished and there was no choice. I went on stage and the magic happened. After that first time, my nerves calmed, and as the tour went on, I realised I absolutely loved performing.

Are you passionate about the theatre?

I love theatre - that moment sitting in the stalls when the house lights go down and you are full of anticipation for what’s to come; there’s nothing like it. I write plays and go to the theatre whenever I can. Starting this new career at the age of 62 was very exciting - it’s another reason I decided to do a second one-woman show. It is exhilarating.

How do you prepare for a theatre show?

The key thing is to pace yourself. My default setting is to fill every minute of the day with writing, editing, doing other work. But what I learned was that when you're on stage every night, and you are travelling to a new venue every day, you must treat the afternoon as down-time because your real work will be six till midnight. 

What do you hope audiences will take away from Labyrinth Live?

More than anything, that they have had a brilliant night out in the theatre. I hope they will have been moved, have laughed, have celebrated, have maybe cried; that audiences will have experienced all the emotions. I write to entertain, and I perform to entertain, so enjoyment is top of the list. Beyond that, I’d like them to have a strong sense of how women’s stories are part of history, too, and how that matters. I’d like them to be thinking about the persecution of the Cathars, and the tragic ways in which history repeats itself through the generations. I’d love them to be thinking about the differences between mystery and folklore, history and legend. I also want people to come out buzzing with the joy of history and knowing that storytelling is the thing that brings us all together.

For those who know Carcassonne, I want them to feel they are there in southwest France, standing on the top of Montségur or wandering through the cobbled streets of medieval Carcassonne. It should be familiar for those who have visited and for those who’ve never been. I hope it will whet their appetite to go.

Why is it so important that we learn about history?

History matters because knowing about the past shines a light on the present. For history to mean anything, it has to be the story of all of us. It cannot be partial, or written with an agenda; it has to shine a light on all people, all countries, all race, all eras, all religions, in order to give a true picture. History is about telling the truth - especially about women’s experiences, which have so often been ignored or left out of the official history books - because that is the only way to achieve a more equal and fairer world. I am an idealist, as you can tell, but I believe fundamentally that storytelling and putting accurate history at the heart of things will get rid of so many of the misunderstandings. Human beings always find a way to muck things up. But if we know the history, at least we can be more sympathetic to those with whom we don't agree, and maybe that leaves room for dialogue.

Labyrinth Live shows at Stafford Gatehouse Theatre, Wed 26 February; Midlands Arts Centre (MAC), Birmingham, Sat 1 March; Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury, Sun 2 March; Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry, Sat 15 March; and Roses Theatre, Tewkesbury, Sat 5 April