A history buff from the Royal Docks has become a published author with a novel combining fantasy and nonfiction.

Royal Docks History Club honorary president Valery Alliez’s book I, Francis Lovel is based on historical research and true events.

Set in the 1400s but with excursions in the 16th and 19th centuries, it tells a different side of the story of the War of the Roses through Francis Lovel - the oldest and closest friend to the last Plantagenet king, Richard III.

Ms Alliez has been a member of the Richard III Society since the 1960s.

She felt “a mixture of excitement and self-congratulation” about getting the book published.

“This novel has been brewing for a long, long time and I’m delighted with it,” she said.

Ms Alliez is one of the founders of the Royal Docks History Club and was made an honorary president to mark its first anniversary celebrations in January 2018.