When I arrived, it was like stepping into one of the novels, a sort of Jilly-augmented reality - the taxi she sent to greet me was straight out of Rutshire, the cab company was called Wonky Wheels and the driver had not only driven her for 30 years but had also played cricket with her late husband, Leo, a publisher of military history. And on arrival at her house, the Chantry, there was a sigh of relief, a sense of reaching home, despite the signs on the front door that read 'Gone to the Pub', 'Don't Disturb' and 'Greyhound on Guard'.