Author of Mother of the Year Karen Ross speaks about her love of Primrose Hill and the supper invitation from Alan Bennett that “got lost in the post”.

What brought you to Primrose Hill?

My dog. Sometimes, I think there should be a rule that you can only live in Primrose Hill if you are a dog owner. If you’re not dog-friendly, it’s a bad place to be!

When you look back at what the area was like when you first moved in, how has it changed?

It has become a tourist hot spot. When I arrived, Regent’s Park Road was a quiet backwater and Primrose Hill itself seemed like one of London’s secret jewels. Not any more – but I think it’s great that so many thousands of people climb the hill to admire the ever-evolving London landscape.

If you were guest editor of the Ham & High for a day, what one local issue would you most like to see reported?

I’d give the edition over to football. Big picture of Soldado’s wonderful goal for Spurs last Sunday on the front page. A mention of Sol Campbell’s petulant “The FA is racist” outburst tucked away inside. And a biased assessment of Arsenal’s chances in their upcoming run of matches against Spurs, Chelsea, Manchester City and Everton.

Your book came out last week – who are your favourite writers? How have your neighbours received your book? And have you met with any other Primrose Hill authors?

My favourite author is John Irving. Not sure about the neighbours, but Primrose Hill Books reports high sales! And my invitation to have supper with Alan Bennett and Helen Fielding must have got lost in the post.

Do you have a favourite place you like to write?

Writing is a job, so I do it in the office. I once went to Spain in search of inspiration. All that happened was that I had a great sabbatical.

Which other place in the world would you twin with Primrose Hill if you could?

There’s a Primrose Hill in Germiston, South Africa, so I’ll go with that. It’s got a primary school, a post office and a pet shop, so I think we’d be compatible!

What makes you smile as you walk to work?

The fact that I don’t commute.

If you had to write your own epitaph, what would it say?

Onwards and Sideways.