It’s good to see the Bristol stool chart being mentioned in the national press (Pass notes, G2, 19 March). I first came across it in the cardiac unit in Bristol, six months after spending many days in the colorectal ward of the Royal United hospital in Bath. If I had seen it six months before, I might have avoided a major op. Why isn’t this chart displayed in hospital loos throughout the NHS? The information on it could result in earlier diagnosis of many illnesses.
Peggy Thomas
Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire
• Is unemployment really at a 44-year low (Report, 20 March)? Is this not comparing figures reflecting the continued use of the dozens of ways Mrs Thatcher found to manipulate the statistics downwards with the earlier unmanipulated counts?
Richard Wilkinson
Emeritus professor of social epidemiology, University of Nottingham
• I am slightly surprised that Margaret Drabble (Letters, 20 March) does not know that Jilted John was written by her fellow Sheffielder Graham Fellows.
Stephen Herring
Nottingham
• Jilted John’s refrain of “Gordon is a moron” was particularly wearing for those of us with that name who were teenagers at the time. I lost count of the times I had to point out that John was jilted because Julie realised Gordon was better looking, cool and trendy.
Gordon Johnston
Clackmannan, Clackmannanshire
• Surely Dylan’s Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right is up there with the best breakup songs (Letters, 20 March). A song for our times?
Siân Saunders
Swansea
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