Letters from James Bond author Ian Fleming to his own “Moneypenny” are expected to fetch up to £3,000 at auction next month.

The correspondence between the writer, who lived in St Margaret's Bay near Dover, and his typist Jean Frampton gives a rare insight into Fleming’s friendship with his staff – even though the two probably never met.

Ms Frampton, who lived in Dorset, was hired to type up the manuscripts for St Fleming’s books, but was also asked to give suggestions on the plots.

One letter, dated March 31, 1960, refers to her "keen mind" and asks for her help in getting his novel Thunderball "into shape".

In another, he writes: "Your occasional comments on the work you have done for me have been so helpful.”

It is thought the pair never met each other in the flesh.

Seller Amy Brenan, of Duke's auctioneers in Dorset, said: “You can look on Mrs Frampton as Ian Fleming's Miss Moneypenny.”

She added: “The collection is interesting because it details how the James Bond books were put together in the early 1960s.”

The auction will take place on April 10 ahead of the centenary year of the writer's birth, which falls in May.

The collection of four signed letters by Fleming is expected to fetch between £2,000 and £3,000.