Helen Graham in conversation with Berne Ferry

Please join us at the Woodstock Bookshop where our own Berne Ferry will be in conversation with Helen Graham, author of the historical novel Disappearing Acts: The Real Mackays Granddaughter which is published on 28 may 2026.Lottie has lived in a magical world of stories and imagination under the shelter of her beloved grandfather, a famous comic actor, for as long as she can remember - but now hes dead and shes stranded in a houseful of cousins, her strict Victorian uncle only noticing her when she steps out of line.

Using her imagination, she begins to navigate the real world on her own terms, lurching from one idea to the next, taking risks and keeping secrets, determined no one will stop her pursuing her theatrical dreams.

Eloping with an aspiring actor at seventeen, Lottie realises too late she has handed control of her life to her charming unpredictable husband who quickly discards the plans they made together and forms a very different kind of travelling theatre company.A game of wits ensues, each vying for control in a world of comedy, illusions, and sleight of hand as they tour the length and breadth of the country till tragedy strikes and the future is suddenly impossible to imagine.