About Polly

The writer

Twenty-nine years old, Polly is the author of three published novels.

She never intended to become a writer; she penned Golden Handcuffs because she was disillusioned with her life as an investment banker - a brief, aborted career - and wanted to 'expose what the Square Mile was all about'. Then, having discovered her passion, she wrote Poles Apart, a novel based on her Polish migrant friend's story.

the day i died is a thought-provoking tale of a girl's discovery of her own identity, centring around a charity for vulnerable youths.

The footballer

Aside from writing, Polly spends a lot of her time playing football. She plays for her local club, Old Actonian Ladies, as well as several five-aside teams around London.

She is a strong believer in the women's game and hopes that at some point, a professional league will be sustainable in the UK despite the lack of funding and support from the men's clubs.

It is hoped that her latest web venture, Girls in Football, will succeed in raising the profile of the game.

The musician

Polly also plays violin in the semi-professional string quartet, No Strings Attached.

The quartet is invited to play at a variety of engagements and functions in the UK and elsewhere, most recently the Barbican, the Dorchester, the House of Commons, the V&A and Newmarket Racecourse.

The musicians met in their first week at Cambridge University and have been playing together ever since.

The snowboarder

For a couple of weeks each winter, the football boots get substituted as Polly carves up the Alps with a bunch of friends.

It has become a tradition for 50 or so twenty-somethings to take over a small, unsuspecting French resort every year, with inevitable carnage ensuing.

The media consultant

In the other half of Polly's double life, she works as a strategist and consultant for online businesses including Bauer-owned properties like FHM.com, Heatworld.com and Magic and Absolute Radio's portfolio of websites.

She also has web ventures of her own and is currently working on a grass-roots sports project, Girls in Football. This is the first of a network of sites, headed up by Polly and her business partner Andy, whose aim is to bring together sportswomen online and to raise the profile of the women's game in the UK.