Thanks for including Lewes Bonfire Night in the Guide (50 free things to do & see, 29 September). However, it’s worth pointing out that, like many folk customs, it’s not a spectator event and runs by its own rules, which don’t really accommodate tourists. The town is filled to capacity every 5 November, it’s noisy, smelly (thanks to the flaming torches), and some people find the robust attitude expressed in the effigies a bit disturbing. Genuinely, the town is best avoided unless you live there or have friends in the area.
Martin Brown
Market Lavington, Wiltshire
• After lamenting Tottenham Hotspur’s failure to get into their new ground by Christmas, John Crace (Digested week, 29 September) then says he’s been watching Grand Designs for 19 years. I doubt that. Any true fan of Grand Designs knows that they never “get in by Christmas”, so why should Spurs be any different?
Sebastian St John-Clarke
Diss, Norfolk
• Great that it’s now free to cross the Severn Bridge (Letters, 4 October). But the tolls have just been exported northwards. We have to pay to cross the new bridge from Runcorn to Widnes. The old bridge was free.
Elaine Aspinwall-Roberts
Liverpool
• There were many happy, hilarious times working with the delightful Geoffrey Hayes (Obituary, 3 October), including making a secretly filmed, X-rated “Twanger” version of Rainbow (viewable on the internet).
Mike Burns
Former Thames Television cameraman
• Of course the restaurant Brat, in a former strip club, would offer Basque-style cooking (Report, 2 October).
David Ambrose
Billingshurst, West Sussex
