GERALD Seymour saw Naples and lived.

Now, as a result of his research in the Southern Italian crime capital, his 25th bestselling novel is about to hit the bookstores.

The popular thriller writer, who shot to fame with his first novel, the Belfast-based Harrys Game, knows the importance of detailed research after being a globetrotting reporter for ITN for 15 years.

But when Harry’s Game became a bestseller both sides of the Atlantic in 1975, Seymour reluctantly traded in telling one story a day for a TV audience for creating thrillers for his growing army of fans.

Getting the facts right is still a crucial part of the writer’s work, and the groundwork he carried out for his latest novel, The Collaborator, was no different.

The novel tells the disturbing story of the Camorra, the family-run crime syndicate that operates in Naples.

According to Seymour, law enforcement agencies are fighting a battle they can never win against a crime clan deeply embedded in almost every important aspect of society.

The writer soaked up the atmosphere in the picturesque Italian port, and tried to ensure he didn’t get too close to his target.

“Naples is a walking city and I did a lot of tramping around,” the author told The Guide.

“I met up with the British Consul in Naples, who has experience of organised crime liaison and told him which part of the city I wanted to go to.

“He gently took my hand and inspected my watch and told me to make sure I wasn’t wearing a Rolex.”

Seymour, who recently moved from Somerset to South Oxfordshire, didn’t have to wait long to see signs of the Camorra on the streets.

“In all the interesting districts of inner Naples, you can find teenagers watching at the top of the street to pass on the word when strangers come into the area. That’s how the security of the clan operates,” he explained.

“The level of violence is quite clear when you pick up a copy of the local newspaper the Cronaca – you can see where the bodies have been dumped in the night.

“It’s a city of police sirens but it’s also a place where some of the most beautiful artworks of western Europe are to be found – there are two worlds moving alongside each other.

“There’s a huge housing estate for about 70,000 people there and it’s known as the principal class A drugs supermarket in Europe. There is an enormous stranglehold that organised crime has on the city and the law enforcement agencies can hold the line, but they can never win.

“I believe the Camorra now has become even stronger than the Sicilian Mafia and their tentacles are spreading further.”

In The Collaborator, Seymour focuses on Immacolata Borelli, the daughter of Naples’ premier crime clan.

While studying accountancy in London, she finds out about the death of a friend and realises her family are indirectly responsible for the murder.

Sickened by the life she has been born into, she decides to betray her family and cooperate with the law enforcement agencies to bring them to justice.

But the Borellis do not forgive and forget easily, and will not give up their crime empire without a vicious fight.

After the first 100 tense pages, which switch between London and Naples, I was completely hooked and found myself wishing I’d read more of Seymour’s blockbusters.

But why does an established author, old enough to be enjoying some down time, give himself the thankless task of researching the Camorra?

“I'm not ready for pushing the supermarket trolley,” Seymour replies. “I always look for strong subjects for my stories.”

When I asked him if he was worried about the Camorra frowning at the contents of his new novel, he points out: “I used to be read quite widely by the Provisional IRA.”

Seymour is already working on a new novel, and finds inspiration while walking his labradors in beech woods near his home.

The author is not afraid to tramp the streets of Naples researching the Camorra but he does fear writer's block, which makes him reluctant to discuss his next project. I'm already intrigued.

FACT FILE: Gerald Seymour was born in Guildford in 1941 to a literary family.

In 1963, he joined ITN and his first assignment was reporting on the Great Train Robbery.

Within a year, he was sent to Cyprus, where he covered his first military conflict. For the next 15 years he reported from areas of conflict around the world from the frontline in South Vietnam, to Aden to Pakistan to Northern Ireland.

He became a specialist in terrorism, reporting on the Basque campaign in northern Spain, the Red Army faction in West Germany, the Red Brigades in Italy, the Angry Brigade in Britain and the worldwide attacks by Palestinian groups.

In 2001, Seymour was the only journalist featured in the Oscar-winning television film, One Night in September, which told the story of the killing of the Israeli athletes and team members at the Munich Olympics.