I can’t believe that in 2026 an article assumes that women need to hide their age (From fat transplants to LED mittens: how the fear of ‘old lady hands’ mobilised the beauty industry, 9 April). I’m an old lady; I have old lady hands. I didn’t know it was an insult.
Ruth Valentine
London
• OK, so the demise of Rose’s Lime Marmalade is a blow (Rose’s Lime Marmalade? Gone. Dark chocolate Bounty? No more. But what about their heartbroken fans?, 8 April), but the death of Butterscotch Instant Whip in 2004 remains, by far, the greater tragedy.
Stephen Percy
Easton, Hampshire
• “It’s time to burst the party balloons bubble” (Letters, 8 April). I’m fast approaching my 63rd birthday, and I’m feeling rather deflated about this.
Ian Elkington
Bicester, Oxfordshire
• In response to Mary Smith (Letters, 9 April), I had a ruse when working of asking someone to spell their surname when I couldn’t remember it. I did this one day at a meeting and received the bemused reply “S, M, I, T, H”. I still feel the embarrassment.
Pat Greatorex
Derby
• Alas, Mary Smith dreams of having a name someone asks her to spell. She should be careful what she wishes for …
Michael Crapper (yes, that is two “p”s)
Whitchurch, Hampshire
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