Phil Lecomber writes the Piccadilly Noir series, set in the underworld of 1930s London. All the "frowsy alleyways and sleazy nightclubs" of Soho come alive in this series.
Phil's latest title The Devil’s Banquet is published on the 23rd of June 2026.
Describe your latest book in one sentence.
Set in 1933, The Devil’s Banquet – the second novel in the Piccadilly Noir series – is a dark, gritty British noir thriller that follows Cockney detective George Harley as he returns to the gangsters, wide-boys and lowlifes of Soho’s underworld to investigate the disappearance of a cabaret dancer.
What soundtrack do you suggest readers should listen to while they read your latest book?
In the story, George Harley comes up against the outrageous German cabaret star Ilse Blau (the self-proclaimed “Queen of Depravity” of Weimar Berlin), so I think something by the great Lotte Lenya would do the trick nicely. Maybe the album Lotte Lenya Sings Kurt Weill – The Seven Deadly Sins / Berlin Theatre Songs, especially the tracks “Moritat von Mackie Messer” (the original “Mack the Knife”) and “Alabama Song”.
What's next?
There will be more adventures for George Harley in the Piccadilly Noir series in the future, but my next published book will be a Sherlock Holmes story. I was commissioned by my publisher to write a Holmesian take on the unsolved Victorian true crime case of Millie Jeffs, a fourteen-year-old girl who disappeared from the streets of West Ham in 1890 and was later found murdered in a vacant house. Millie’s case became linked to a wider series of mysterious disappearances involving other young girls in the West Ham area. Sherlock Holmes and the Vanishing Girls of West Ham will be published by Titan Books in September 2027.
What was the first book you remember reading?
That’s a tough question, and I’m finding it hard to answer. The first book I can remember being a significant presence in my early life was C. S. Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe – but I think it was read to me (probably in infants’ or junior school). My memories of early childhood are a little hazy.
Please list your top five all-time favourite books (any genre)
Another tough question! I think (just like my favourite songs/albums) this probably changes on a monthly basis; but taking a stab at it:
- The Talented Mr Ripley, by Patricia Highsmith (I could probably choose all five as Highsmith books)
- Night and the City, by Gerald Kersh.
- Brighton Rock, by Graham Greene.
- Twenty Thousand Streets Under the Sky, by Patrick Hamilton.
- King Dido, by Alexander Baron.
What is the most underrated crime novel, and why does it deserve more attention?
I think one book that might qualify for that title is Mr Bowling Buys a Newspaper, by Donald Henderson. First published in 1943, this darkly humorous tale tells of a mild-mannered travelling salesman who – apart from the fact that he is a serial killer – presents as the most humdrum, anonymous individual. It is a psychological thriller, told with ironic British aplomb, and has the same kind of moral ambiguity that attracts me to Patricia Highsmith’s work. Apparently, it was a favourite of Raymond Chandler’s. There’s a nice Harper Collins edition from 2018 with an introduction by the fabulous Martin Edwards (with whom I share an agent).
The Gumshoe Dude sneaks into your latest story while you’re not looking. What is he doing there?
If he’s in a Piccadilly Noir story, then there’s a good chance he’s either a Joe Ronce (ponce = a pimp), a chiv-man (a criminal apt to use a knife or razor as a weapon), a san toy (mobster), or some other kind of petty criminal lowlife; the dark underbelly of the city in which my Cockney detective, George Harley, operates, is awash with such dubious characters. Alternatively, he could also be an aristocratic adept of one of London’s occult societies of the time, headed up either by the fiendish Fedor von Görlitz or the saturnine dandy Simeon Dubois. Either way, my advice is that he gets out as soon as possible, as it’s not likely to end well – there are no “cosy” crimes in George Harley’s world.
And now for the quick questions:
Top book on your TBR (to-be-read)
The Green Child, by Herbert Read
Poirot or Rebus?
Poirot
Keyboard or pen?
Keyboard (guitar?)
Audio or E-book?
E-book
If you turn on the radio now, what station is playing?
Radio 4
And finally, your writing beverage of choice?
Black tea
Questions ©Bonnie Burke-Patel and Anneli Meeder; Responses ©Phil Lecomber, author photo ©Jamie Sinclair
