A book inspired by the wartime romance of a couple who later settled in the Isle of Man has been published.

Lily’s War, published by Zaffre, loosely follows the love story of author Shirley Mann’s parents Eileen and David Johnson who later lived in Castletown.

Shirley’s debut novel - with the fictional main characters being Lily and Danny - was written in tribute to her mother, a wireless operator in the Second World War.

Eileen and David, who served in the Eighth Army, moved to the island in the 70s, which is included in the book. They are buried at Malew Churchyard.

Shirley, a Derbyshire-based journalist who spent most of her career at the BBC, said: ’When my mum was in her late years I thought "there’s a story here and I need to speak about it".

’When she died in 2013 I thought I need to do something with this, but I hadn’t asked her enough questions.’

To further understand her mother’s role in the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF), she spoke with former WAAFs and Royal Air Force historians.

’They were just wonderful, these women who were aged 90 telling me about their everyday life during their time in the WAAF,’ she said.

Shirley was encouraged to put pen to paper after receiving a writing course as a 60th birthday present.

’Being a journalist, you know your facts and it was very different going into fiction. I had to go to creative writing classes, but I wanted the real events to be there,’ she said.

After the war her father worked as a salesman in Liverpool. Having been to the island for work, the pair decided to settle in Castletown where David died in 1985. Shirley and other family members had visited them in the town often.

’The Isle of Man has such a special place in my heart,’ she said. ’It’s the place where their story ended.’

’It’s terribly hard when you’ve lost both your parents. The book, which took six years to complete, is a legacy for them and also for the WAAFs.’