Zadie gets in a whirl over flat noise

Zadie Smith made her name writing about the comical lives of the residents of northwest London. Now the award- winning young author of White Teeth is embroiled in a domestic drama of her own - and it is almost as surreal as the antics of her fictional heroes and heroines.

The row centres on Miss Smith's fondness for relaxing in a whirlpool bath after a hard day's writing.

But while she uses the bath, her downstairs neighbour claims he has to endure the sound of its motor whirring so loudly "it makes the walls shake".

Hendley Taylor, who lives alone in a flat below Miss Smith in the same threestorey house in Kilburn, has complained to the council and is now so distressed that he plans to sell his home of 11 years.

He said: "The noise has been unbearable. But I stopped trying to complain a year ago - it doesn't seem to do any good. I think she's away at the moment, so I have had some peace. I have spent all day today looking for a new house. I really don't want to make too much of a big deal of this - I want to be able to sell my h ome after all."

Mr Taylor, who is in his sixties, told friends his problems began when builders arrived to install the bath.

One friend said: "The thing had to be hulked past the door to his flat, which was noisy in itself. Then there was the banging of it all being installed.

"Then the noise when it was turned on was deafening - a constant throbbing coming right through into Hendley's flat.

"He's a lovely old soul and has tried not to cause too much fuss over it all. But he loses sleep during the evenings and in the day he can't concentrate on anything. He started complaining but stopped when he realised it was doing no good."

A spokesman for Brent council confirmed a complaint had been received by Mr Taylor - but at the time environmental services officers visited to measure the noise level it was not deemed to be of sufficient "nuisance" to warrant further action.

They likened the noise level to the sound made by a noisy boiler or extractor fan.

Miss Smith's agent was not available for comment last night.

The Cambridge University graduate has rapidly established herself as one of Britain's leading novelists. White Teeth, for which she was paid a £250,000 advance at the age of 21, was shortlisted for the Booker and Orange Prizes, and sold a million copies in paperback. Now 28, she is said to have become a millionaire from its sales.

She reportedly received a further £250,000 advance for her second novel - The Autograph Man - and is working on a third.

Miss Smith is reported to be engaged to her boyfriend of two years, fellow writer Nick Laird.

Mr Laird, 28, one of Miss Smith's Cambridge contemporaries, recently won a £100,000 two-book deal after a fierce bidding war for his debut novel, Utterly Monkey.

Miss Smith has lived in the Kilburn flat for three years.