Basil Brush was a “children’s television favourite of the 80s” (Edinburgh fringe to host Basil Brush chatshow, 6 June)? His eponymous TV series ended in 1980 before being resurrected in the 2000s. Basil’s heyday and my childhood coincided beautifully in the 1970s. Maybe you were mistaking him for Roland Rat. Which would be a travesty indeed.
Mark McDonnell
Edinburgh
• We were interested to read about the effects of stressed humans on their pet dogs (Dogs mirror stress levels of owners, researchers find, 7 July). We would like to suggest that, after 12 years living with our border collie, this phenomenon has operated in reverse in our house!
Terry and Joan Tossell
Kidlington, Oxfordshire
• As a cultivated and polite Leytonstone teenager, Sharon White was also the most gifted student I have known during 30 years of teaching in very different secondary schools. She deserves her position on ability and not as yet another “race, gender, class” nominee – which is as it should be (Ofcom chief named as new chairman of John Lewis, 7 June).
David Ashton
Sheringham, Norfolk
• Re Adrian Chiles’ article (My local Sainsbury’s is run by robots – can a human please help?, G2, 6 June), always ignore a machine and queue. It is surely worth giving the time to save people’s jobs. In my experience, Sainsbury’s respond and open another human-operated till when necessary.
Liz Byrne
Letchworth, Hertfordshire
• My wife was born on the same day as Sir Alex Ferguson – 31 December, 1941 – and I have never needed a hair dryer (Letters, 7 June).
John Bailey
St Albans, Hertfordshire
• I share my exact birthday with Mick Jagger. He is thinner and richer than I am, but I reckon I am better looking.
Mary Finch
Ditteridge, Wiltshire
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