Lord Archer's first step towards becoming a public figure again came when he gave an ITV interview last month in which he revealed he was set to play in a West End theatre production.
The play, The Accused, had been written during the depths of a personal crisis in the aftermath of his departure from the race for London mayor.
He would play the role of a man accused of murdering his wife, he said, with the dramatic - and perhaps symbolic - final twist of having the audience vote on the character's innocence or guilt after the courtroom speeches.
In the interview, he said he was close to tears when he resigned as Tory mayoral candidate for London, saying he felt "total despair, a total feeling of failure, having let people down".
He added: "I could have done that job and would have enjoyed immensely doing it and will regret for the rest of my life my own stupidity."
Up until then, Lord Archer had shunned the media. He had not given a single interview following his downfall - fielding his then spokesman, Mr Stephan Shakespeare, for interviews.
His television interview with ITV was followed two weeks ago by the news that he had slipped into his old seat on the back-benches of the House of Lords to listen to question time.
The move followed his expulsion in February from the Conservative Party for five years - after having been a member for all of his adult life.
Lord Strathclyde, Opposition leader in the Lords, said he had "no problem" with Lord Archer's decision to resume his seat as a precedent had been set in the 1980s by a late peer who also had lost the Tory whip.
Last week, the publishers, Harper Collins, appeared to aid Lord Archer's comeback with an announcement that it would be signing him up for three more books. The deal was thought to be worth seven figures.