Jilly Cooper is so well known that she doesn't really need any introduction, a best selling author for many years, her catalogue includes Riders, Rivals, and Polo to name but a few.

They moved to Bisley back in 1982 after a chance mention over lunch at Longleat of a beautiful property up for grabs - husband Leo came down the next day and fell in love with it - buying it on the spot. Both find Bisley an incredibly friendly village, with the Stirrup Cup at the centre making a perfect meeting place.

Jilly has admitted that she often meets people in the pub and then incorporates their foibles into her characters - so who knows, anyone could end up immortalised just by dropping in for a swift half! Apparently her new book does feature a very wayward landlady who gets up to all sorts of naughty things, but Jilly assures me that this character is definitely not based on our Mo!!

There are two things which Jilly says makes the Stirrup Cup so special for her, the first is the fact that all the team look after her husband Leo so well, his parkinsons makes mobility a bit tricky. In fact Leo claims the pub as his second home. The other favourite is the fact that dogs are made so welcome and her beloved Feather can enjoy a recline on the bench seating beside her. In fact her son's dog knew the pub so well that he would regularly run off and end up at the pub!