BESTSELLING authoress Josephine Cox took a trip down memory lane when she visited her old school -- some 50 years on.

The uniforms at Blackburn's St Anne's RC Primary School may be a long way from the raggy-trousered children playing there in her day, but the homely atmosphere was still the same. And the prolific saga writer, who has just released her 29th novel Bad Boy Jack at the age of 59, was 'delighted' to make a guest appearance at the Feilden Street school yesterday to open a new computer suite.

"It is wonderful to be here and the new computer suite is a huge step forward for the children. When I think of the pencils and paper when I was at school!" said Josephine. The post-war Blackburn school was at the epicentre of the novelists world -- a life of hardship and poverty. But you "can't forget your roots" she said.

She used to dictate stories for a penny on street corners to help the family of 10 children make ends meet. But it was at school that her love of literature was nurtured. "My teacher Miss Jackson was a very small lady with white hair. She was very prim and proper but you did not dare go against her. She was brilliant and had a huge influence on my life. I will never forget the things she taught me about language and the art of story telling."

She told the children her favourite books were by Roald Dahl and Charles Dickens. But the mother-of-two refused to give out text-book advice. "I don't give advice as it is condescending, but I like to suggest things in the flow of what the children ask me."

She described 'olden days' Blackburn to the children as a maze of ginnels and "charismatic charm." The then William Henry Street and Derwent Street, where she lived as nine-year-old Josephine Brindle, were brought back to life.

Nowadays, living in Buckinghamshire, with a second home in sunny Cyprus, she writes two Number One best-sellers every year and her work has been translated into French, Dutch, Polish and Russian.

Barbara Cuff, acting headteacher, said: "The children were really excited about meeting her and spent a long time thinking up lots of questions about life when she was here."

The new ICT suite comprises 17 new computers, worth £32,000, funded in part by the school and the Government.

"This equipment means an enormous amount to the children as we will be able to take a whole class for computer lessons at once."