At some unspecified time in the near or distant future, Tessa Darley will decide the time is right to have a baby.She might be 40, 50 or even 60. No matter. Tessa will simply pop along to the "baby bank" where her eggs have been stored in a deep freeze and make a "withdrawal".
An egg will be fertilised and planted into her womb. Nine months later, she hopes, she will give birth to her "ice baby".
Two months ago, Tessa, 37, became one of the first women in Britain to have eggs taken from her ovaries and frozen for no other reason than the fact she wants nothing to interfere with her career.
"I have half a dozen on ice in a freezer," she says. "I feel liberated, as if a weight has been lifted from me. I truly believe it will turn out to be a wonderful investment.
"It means I don't have to worry that I will be too old for babies.
"I can devote time to my career, take my time finding Mr Right and know that when I deem the time is right, even if I am menopausal, I can still have my own baby."
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