As someone who was brought up in Ilford, and the proud owner of a book called Royalty in Essex, presented to all Essex schoolchildren for the coronation of 1953, I am increasingly frustrated to hear it described as being in east London (Welcome to Ilford, where Essex isn’t the only way for some, 19 April). What’s more, it seems even more ridiculous when Romford, which is even further away from the city, is similarly described. As a self-described Essex girl, I will continue to write Essex on cards and letters sent to friends who still live in Ilford.
Marie Paterson
Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Sorry, but Eva Hart wasn’t an Ilford resident. She lived a couple of miles further up the High Road in Chadwell Heath, where there is a pub named after her.
Bob Metcalfe
Romford, Essex
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