Steph McGovern's Thriller "Deadline" Explores Stalking and Media Intrigue

TV presenter Steph McGovern has turned her real-life experiences into fiction with her debut thriller, Deadline, which delves into the dark worlds of stalking, political corruption, and media manipulation. Drawing from her extensive career as a journalist, McGovern crafts a narrative that is both gripping and personal.

McGovern, known for her former role as host of Steph’s Packed Lunch and as a top TV business reporter, uses her two decades of interviewing global power figures, including former US President Donald Trump, as inspiration for her novel’s characters. “A lot of it comes from my experiences of being a broadcaster – the power, corruption, and lies that can happen,” she reveals.

From Real Life to Fiction

In Deadline, the story follows fictional TV business reporter Rose Steedman, who finds herself in a perilous situation when her live broadcast is hijacked. Millions watch as her earpiece is hacked, and a voice informs her that her child and wife have been kidnapped. The novel unfolds in real-time over 20 minutes of live television, interspersed with flashbacks that reveal the backstories of the characters involved.

One of the novel’s themes hits particularly close to home for McGovern, who hails from Middlesbrough and now resides in Tynemouth. “Obviously, Deadline is fiction, but it is inspired and driven by things I have seen in my career,” she explains. “I had a stalker, so the stalker in the book is very much the stalker I had, just with a different name and different ending in terms of what happens.”

Personal Experiences and Public Perception

McGovern recounts her own experience with a stalker who would appear at her filming locations, convinced they were in a relationship. “He wrote to my dad, and the BBC security team had to get involved to warn him off,” she recalls. Despite the unsettling nature of the situation, McGovern remained unfazed, attributing her resilience to her upbringing in Middlesbrough. “I grew up in Middlesbrough where I saw tough stuff, so some old man who thought I was his girlfriend didn’t really frighten me,” she says.

Her decision to incorporate this personal drama into her thriller was influenced by the nonchalant reaction she received from colleagues at the BBC. “When I said I had a stalker at work, everyone was like, ‘Oh, have you got one as well?’ It was like, everyone gets one at some point, so I wanted to write about that too.”

The Craft of Storytelling

McGovern’s fascination with the inner workings of television and journalism is evident in her writing. The novel’s plot device of a hacked earpiece stems from a question she frequently encounters: how do TV presenters manage to conduct interviews while receiving instructions through an earpiece? Her curiosity led her to ask colleagues what they would do if faced with a similar hijacking scenario, and their varied responses inspired elements of her story.

Her time on BBC Breakfast equipped her with a thick skin, a necessary trait for dealing with both a stalker and the daily barrage of online trolling. “I am trolled every day on social media,” she admits. “Whatever you put out, someone will be annoyed by what you have said or what you look like.”

Looking Ahead

McGovern’s journey to publishing Deadline was long, hindered by “imposter syndrome” until the pandemic provided the impetus to complete the book. She recently held her first book event at The Exchange in Tynemouth, interviewed by crime authors Ann Cleeves and Val McDermid. Her upcoming appearance at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate marks another milestone, where she will discuss her work with readers and fellow authors.

As McGovern embarks on writing the next installment in her series, she teases a new storyline involving a group of friends on a plane, one of whom mysteriously disappears. Talks are also underway to adapt Deadline into a TV drama, a prospect McGovern finds both thrilling and daunting. “Hopefully, Netflix are reading this! I would love to be a part of this,” she jokes.

Deadline by Steph McGovern is published by Macmillan and is available now. For more information about her upcoming appearances, visit the Harrogate International Festivals website.