It’s not just the sexism and prejudice at the BBC (Why no white-haired women on the BBC?, Letters, 22 August). Many women simply don’t want to see a white-haired woman in the mirror. The reasons for this need investigation; perhaps Susie Orbach could write another book: White Hair Is a Feminist Issue?
Dr Brigid Purcell
Norwich
• Peter Bradshaw wishes that Strictly Come Dancing’s Tess Daly is one day “allowed” to “present a show with a man 40 years her junior” (TV’s gender game, 24 August). Has he not noticed that she in fact presents Strictly herself now – together with another woman (Claudia Winkleman)? Or is the idea of women presenting such primetime shows themselves, without being accompanied by a man of any age, just a bit too much for his own gendered perspective to take in? Do keep up, Peter.
Professor Helen Colley
Manchester
• I assume Gerard McArdle, who refers to me as “Mitchie” (India not so rosy for the lower castes, Letters, 22 August), is English: the name is Scottish, the ch pronounced as in “loch”, but the English pronounce it as in “latch”, and then to match the spelling to their pronunciation they insert a “t” before the “ch”. A publisher did that to our dad (Donald Michie) on the cover of one of his books, and then seemed annoyed when he pointed it out.
Jonathan Michie
Oxford
• It was helpful of the waiter to explain why “éclair” is a masculine noun in French (Proper tea for Troyes and Biarritz visitors, Letters 24 August). More difficult to have had to explain to a French waiter why “waiter” is no longer a masculine noun in English.
Mike Hine
Kingston upon Thames, Surrey
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