Ref. 24507-04LOLA Vavoom Road or Braxton Hicks Street could be the eye-catching addresses of residents moving into new estates in Swindon.

They are characters from Jasper Fforde's best selling books, which are set in a surreal version of mid-1980s Swindon.

Swindon Council approached the fantasy novelist as his bizarre books have placed the town firmly on the literary map.

Mr Fforde, who appeared at last year's Swindon Festival of Literature, said: "I am delighted, I think it is a great idea.

"The road names are likely to last longer than my books. People in the year 3047 will probably wonder what they were named after.

"I just like silly names. It is a tradition in English literature that goes all the way back to Dickens, with Mr Pickwick and all that so I thought why not.

Mr Fforde's novels track the adventures of literary detective Thursday Next who lives in a parallel universe where the Crimean War has never ended and Wales is a socialist republic.

The books are peppered with references to familiar locations such as the Magic Roundabout, Stratton bypass and Commercial Road.

The town is both familiar and very different from the one we live in. The County Ground is not a football arena but a croquet stadium.

Mr Fforde decided to set the novel in Swindon after working here for three weeks in 1982 as an assistant on the film Champions about jockey Bob Champion.

He also got to know the town when he lived in Marlborough during the 1990s.

He added: "There are far worse places to live than Swindon.

"I'd rather live there than in Slough or Reading.

"The idea to set the books in Swindon was partly to do with its reputation. I wanted to write an exciting and vibrant story located there."

Using the outlandish names was the brainchild of Fforde fan Kristin Woodland who works in Swindon Council's Highways department.

She said: "I particularly enjoy the fact that he writes about Swindon in a very positive light.

"We are continually looking for street names with local themes for the large number of roads being developed so I suggested that we use the names of his characters for some of the new roads."

Mr Fforde will be signing copies of his latest novel The Well of Lost Plots, at WH Smith in Regent Street on Monday between noon and 2pm.

The other Thursday Next novels are The Eyre Affair and Lost in a Good Book. The author has sold half a million copies of his three novels. He is currently working on the fourth book in the series.

Anyone can suggest a name for a new street but it must meet with certain requirements such as not being under copyright or be likely to cause offence. The Royal Mail must also approve them. Who do you think the new streets of Swindon should be named after and why? Call the Advertiser newsroom on 01793 528144 with your suggestions.

On the road to a fame name.

NEW street names in Swindon based on a theme.

Roads in Abbey Meads share the same names as glamorous Hollywood stars.

Bergman Close was named in honour of the Swedish actress Ingrid whose most famous part was in Casablanca.

Laurence Olivier also has a street named in his honour, Olivier Road, as does John Wayne, Wayne Close, and Mary Pickford, Pickford Way.

Literature has also inspired street names. We have a 16th century playwright Marlowe Avenue as well as romantic poets Wordsworth Drive and Shelley Street.

Swindon also boasts its own Penny Lane, named after the Beatles' song, when the record company EMI moved its production plant there.

Rumours abound that other suggestions for the street included Mercury Drive, in honour of the former Queen frontman Freddie, Abbey Road and The Long and Winding Road, which was rejected because the street is neither.