Adrian Chiles is spot-on objecting to the “twisting” of favourite foodstuffs (Cheddar and stout?! Salted caramel?! This messing with hot cross buns has to stop, 16 February). Fortunately not everyone is taken in. My boss bought a box of prosecco and strawberry flavour porridge sachets for everyone in the office to celebrate Valentine’s Day this week. They haven’t been touched.
Matthew Newman
Leeds
• You report that Labour are to promise more neighbourhood police officers “like Catherine Cawood” (15 February). Sergeant Cawood is a fictitious character who spends most of her professional life sorting out the traumatic chaos in her complicated personal life and only turns up for an hour a week. That’s just what we need.
Toby Wood
Peterborough, Cambridgeshire
• Michael Robinson reports cutting his Hertfordshire lawn on 1 February (Letters, 16 February). May I respectfully ask that he now refrains from cutting it again until at least June? The local insects and birds would be very grateful.
Neil Cole
Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire
• Has Zoe Williams not got hooked on Wordiply (How am I spending early middle age? Playing Phrazle – and other mesmerising word games, 14 February)? Someone should tell her.
Mary Shephard
Eastleigh, Hampshire
• So now Paul Burns (Letters, 13 February) mansplains John Roberts (12 February) mainsplaining Jim McLean (9 February) mansplaining Rebecca Solnit’s article on mansplaining (Opinion, 9 February). Where’s Alanis Morissette when you need her?
Andrew Bailey
Manchester
• Can someone mansplain the letter in Welsh (13 February) for those who aren’t au fait with the language?
Ian Watson
Glasgow
• The last letter above was amended on 19 February to correct the month in the cross-reference.
