Not sure, but in the US you can quote anyone in public office by name and what they say from them making a speech or comment or talking in a public forum because I looked it up on a reputable legal site on the net. I've used a quote from an Italian newspaper of a Catholic Priest's statement about the Catholic position on the possible existence of aliens. I named the priest, the date and the newspaper, though I didn't quote the headline. I've also used a quote for President Reagan's address to the UN Assembly about the threat of aliens and him questioning if they already live amongst us. I used those quotes at the beginning of the Killers Amongst Us.

 

Thriller authors do this all the time, so I'm imagining it's above board.

 

Check out Barry Eisler's The God's Eye View. He uses a lot of real people in that thriller.

 

Best seller Jeffery Archer does it frequently in his fiction.
He'll have one of his characters meet Margaret Thatcher or others for a brief conversation.
A short made-up conversation, not quotes from a speech.

 

For the most part, you'll find trad published books shying away from this. Seeing Obama on a news report, briefly meeting him, reporting on something that actually happened - those are all right. Putting dialogue in a real person's mouth or having them kill the butler, probably a bad idea. The internet is world wide and libel laws vary by country. Simply describe them as accurately as possible so everyone knows who the character is supposed to be and give them a different name.

 

Unless you make up a torrid affair, such as a threesome between May, Obama, and whoever else (and that too would be okay for satire such as Monty Python might engage in), and claim that it is real, I don't think you have a problem. Because they are public figures and political leaders and they chose to enter public life and give up some privileges in exchange for immense power. I realize British laws are more draconian than US laws in this matter, but I can't imagine merely mentioning their names or using them in obviously fake situations (in fiction) would be a problem.  Fiction, of course, would always come with the usual disclaimer.

 

I guess it depends on your purpose. Saturday night live skits seem to be where I see real names the most. A number of the movies and tv shows I've seen over that last year or so rarely use the name of a sitting politician. I have seen a couple use a blurred image of the back of a man who looks like Obama but that is it.

The reason I've taken note of it is because over the years I've seen some writers advocate that it adds 'realism' and I gave it some thought. I decided against it for one reason.

As a 'reader'...whenever I read a book that mentions someone like Thatcher or Bush or some other politician, to me it makes the work seem dated. The same thing with a movie or tv show. Using characters that are unknown makes the story seem fresh. Even if the story or show was done ten years ago that's just how it feels to me.

I guess you could say I decided to write for readers like me.

 

In the US it's almost impossible to slander or libel a celebrity or public official. In order to win damages, the
celeb/official would have to prove "actual malice." In other words, that it is personal with you, not just a story. News organization attorneys teach that to reporters, etc. all the time.
The EU and other countries are a different can of worms. The EU and others value privacy over openness while the US sees it the the other way around. I wouldn't mess with Putin if I was in Russia.

 

There's always the 'roman a clef' technique
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_%C3%A0_clef

Roman a clef, French for novel with a key, is a novel about real life, overlaid with a facade of fiction. The fictitious names in the novel represent real people, and the "key" is the relationship between the nonfiction and the fiction. The "key" may be produced separately by the author or implied through the use of epigraphs or other literary techniques.

 

Thank you everyone for your replies! It seems there is quite a spectrum of opinion on this, hmmm. But good point that thriller authors use the real names often. If it's good enough for Jeffrey Archer it's good enough for me!

I do appreciate the concern that the real names could make it feel dated. That boat already sailed with this book though, as it also includes the Juno probe, the Brussels airport terror attack, and other actual events of 2016.

Topical realism is what I'm going for here, so I'm going to go ahead and use their real names, in a respectful way. If I get sued I will come back and report

Thanks again everyone!