Former Swindon teacher Teresa Davey was in town earlier this week, putting the finishing touches to her first novel.

Not surprisingly Swindon features prominently in the as yet unnamed book which she describes as a psychological novel.

And what's more, the main character is a woman feature writer on the Evening Advert-iser although Teresa stresses that the fact the woman is a journalist is not essential to the story.

She also maintains that she has not based her character on any of the paper's past or present staff although many people I am sure will be looking hard to identify their colleagues' characteristics.

On Monday Teresa, who now lives in Newcastle on the foothills of the Mourne Moun-tains in the south east corner of Northern Ireland, called into our Old Town offices to get a feel of what life is really like working for a local newspaper.

She was given the low-down on the newsroom and the characters who work in it and didn't seem too surprised to find out just how frenetic life can be on a busy evening newspaper where meeting tight deadlines is paramount.

Teresa moved to Northern Ireland some nine years ago when husband Bernard, the popular BBC weather presenter, retired after developing multiple sclerosis.

The couple, who have three children, lived in Old Walcot for 13 years, and Teresa was a teacher at the town's Holy Family Junior School for three years.

At the moment she is doing an MA in creative writing at Queen's University in Belfast, which has spurred her on to tackle her first novel.

Teresa is reluctant to reveal too many details about the plot or the characters in it.

But she said: "Basically the book is set in Swindon but the plot also moves to Northern Ireland.

"It is a psychological and dramatic story about a woman who makes a decision when she is just 18 years old and has to live with it."

And that is all Teresa, 57, is prepared to say about the storyline at the moment.

What we do know is that the book has some 72,000 words and that she has been working on it for the past 18 months.

Previously Teresa has written short stories and is now looking for a publisher who will take on her first novel.

She admitted: "Apparently the older you are the more difficult it is to get a publisher because younger people are easier to market.

"But I am confident that I will find one."

She and Bernard are still regular visitors to Swindon, spending Christmases here with their daughter Mica Kearns, son-in-law Liam and their five boys, who are aged between nine and 19 years.

Mica is a midwife at Swin-don's Great Western Hospital and the family lives in Upham Road.

Teresa also visits on three or four other occasions during the year.

Bernard and Teresa also have a second daughter still living at home and a married son who is working for the Department of International Development in Ecuador.

Settled outlook for Bernard

The many Swindon friends of Bernard Davey will be pleased to hear that since he moved to live in Ireland the multiple sclerosis which forced him to retire at the early age of 50 has not got any worse.

Teresa said: "Now that he has retired he is able to live a more relaxed lifestyle where, if he does become tired, he can have a rest and recharge his batteries.

"Bernard considers himself very fortunate. He walks our dog every day and is enjoying life."

It was in 1994 that Bernard retired from his job with the BBC after developing MS.

He insisted at the time that the diagnosis was not the end of the world and vowed to keep himself active, which is something he has done.

Other MS sufferers in Swindon said they found his attitude to the disease comforting.

A Belfast-born man, Bernard enjoys nothing more than a stroll with his dog through the countryside near his new home and this has resulted in him writing two books.

The first illustrated publication was called Bernard Davey's Mourne Ten Walks with the Weatherman.

Bernard originally joined the Met Office to train as a weather observer after moving to England in 1962.

He worked in many places including Libya and Germany, and at one time was in charge of the weather observation teams at RAF Lyneham and RAF Kemble.

Promotion followed and he worked as a forecaster at the London Weather Centre before joining the BBC in 1988.