BISHOPSTONE author Stuart Finlay is celebrating the launch of his first book.

The 44-year-old telecoms sales manager signed copies of his new tome What Would Churchill Do? at Borders bookstore in North Swindon on Saturday.

The 130-page paperback gives "business advice from the man who saved the world".

"I'm fascinated by Churchill and his memoirs, said Stuart.

"So I decided, rather than write the kind of dreary business aids you find so often in bookstores, I would draw on the nuggets of business wisdom Churchill recorded in his memoirs."

One such titbit reads: "Your past can be a bridle or a spur."

"This I found really reflected an experience I had during my career," Stuart said.

"I just wanted to write something about Churchill which hadn't been done before.

"Putting his wisdom to a specific use I suppose."

During his 20 year career in business Stuart has worked for a number of large corporations in sales and marketing and he is presently a sales manager at a UK public limited company.

Stuart began writing the book, which he had wanted to write for a while, in March last year after buying copies of Churchill's memoirs at a vintage bookstore.

As he ploughed through the books he saw how adapting Churchill's words and actions to modern business, people could get ahead.

"It seemed a real shame that very few other people outside of the Churchill societies and historians would ever find out about it," he said.

By September the book was complete and ready for editing by Stuart's wife Fiona.

"It was really difficult choosing what to keep and what to omit," Stuart said.

"The book makes no claim to turn anyone into an overnight success.

"It aims to entertain, give the reader an insight into the war and make them think about how they operate in business and interact with people. I decided to have this book as volume one so that when, and if, I come to write another it can lead on from there."

The father-of-two is hoping his twin sons Byron and Henry, 12, will read the book before entering the world of work when they leave school.

"I think they would then be set for life," he said.

Copies of What Would Churchill Do - Business Advice From The Man Who Saved The World are available from Borders, amazon.com and amazon.co.uk priced at £14.99.