British writer, historian and journalist Lesley Downer has been visiting Japan and writing about it for nearly 35 years — beginning in 1978, when she was part of the first-ever intake of the English Teaching Recruitment Program, which evolved into the famous JET (Japan Exchange and Teaching Program) scheme.
Since then, she has presented a popular BBC series on Japanese cookery, as well as making a documentary titled "Journey to a Lost Japan" for Britain's Channel 4 TV and New York-based WNET, and one in Japanese on NHK TV, titled "Journey of the Heart" — each about her journey in the footsteps of a trek made by haiku poet Matsuo Basho (1644-94) that inspired his 1689 masterpiece, "The Narrow Road to the Deep North." She is the author of three novels, two biographies, a nonfiction account of geisha life, and a travelogue. Her most recent book is the newly published "Across a Bridge of Dreams," an engrossing historical romance set in conflict-ridden 1860s Japan.
For this interview, she welcomes me to her home in North London, where her affection for all things Japanese is evident from the many artworks and mementos on display. The top floor is an airy, book-strewn study, while modestly tucked onto shelves on the landing are copies of her books in translation. On the floor below is another study, that of her American husband, Arthur I. Miller, the author of "Einstein Picasso" who, Downer says, "writes on the crossover between art and science."