Helen Mahy, group company secretary and general counsel at the National Grid, has another string to her bow. She writes children’s stories that feature the adventures of Basil, a black and white spaniel.

Basil is based on Mahy’s own dog of the same name and lives with Mr and Mrs Mann, whose characters are based on Mahy and her husband.

Helen started writing the stories five years ago, imagining the conversations that her dog might have with other creatures he encounters on their walks in the countryside. While none of Basil’s adventures feature meetings with lawyers, some of the characters that he meets are based on people Mahy knows.

In one story, Basil’s Blackberry Day, Basil meets a mink called Skadden, named after the US law firm. Her second series of books, due out next month, includes a story containing badgers named after two partners at City firm Linklaters. The names, said Mahy, seemed appropriate because ‘badgers, like corporate lawyers, work all night’.

To order the books see the website. All proceeds go towards Special Olympics Great Britain, which provides sports training and competition for people with disabilities.