... Muggeridge on muck Sir, Mr. Muggeridge did not only auack the theatre for its nude plays but rather for its obsession on sex ual perversions such as plays deal ing with nudity, homosexuals, les- bfens. Surely to God, Jennie Lee and R. B. Marriott are not defending these types of play as being typical of the lives English people live? Surely there are enough decent actors and playwrights ...

... While resting SIR. It occurs to me that out-of- work or resting actors and actresses might find a fruitful outlet for their talents by serving as temporary occupational therapists in the mental hospita's. There is a crying need. It would be up to them, as in dividuals, whether they offered their services voluntarily, or insisted on the proper rate for the job. A useful compromise might be to ...

... What the public wants SIR,--I read the letter New Plays for Old with great interest. As director of a small seaside repertory company, I would like to point out to Mr. Curzon, that it is only by doing old, hackneyed plays that ^regular playgoers have already seen that companies like ours can continue to function. It is a cold, harsh fact, but we stiU need an audncnce if the weekly wage and ...

... Traditional pantomime SIR,--I must cross swords with Malcolm Richards, who claims that a pantomime cannot be truly traditional if the hero is played by a man. It was only with the rise of the female music-hall star, at the tum of the century, that the female principal boy was introduced, and portraits of ladies like Mane Uoyd in spangled tights, their eminently female dimensions surmounted ...

... Muggeridge answered SIR, Thank you so much for R. B. Marriott's excellent answer to Malcolm Muggeridge. To my mind, Mr. Muggeridge, with his easy access to the mass media, mounted a completely unfair attack on the Arts. This period, so soon after the lifting of censorship, should have been treated fairly and without hysteria. The article contributed much to the restoring of the balance. Yours ...

... George Robey SIR. In his tribute to George Robey, R. B. Marriott omits to men tion his remarkable ability to fill in at any given moment. Many years ago when appearing at the Hippo drome. Birmingham, he was in formed that the Russian Ballet, ap pearing at the Royal, had been ordered to wear tights by the Birm ingham Watch Committee. This idiotic Grundyism was too much to resist having a sly ...

... Adaptor at fault? Dear Sir, Is it possible to portray on television the sad beauty of Once In Every Lifetime, by Tom Hanlin. damned by your critic last week? If it is, then the adaptor was at fault, first in not sticking faithfully to the story and secondly in not using the tech niques of the medium to cap ture the spirit of the best and most undervalued working-class novel written since the ...

... Penny wise SIR. Having sent the manager of the Coliseum a snorter about the 3s. programme charge, following a visit to the Damnation, I was delighted to see The Stage has taken this up, for surely something will now be done. In common with dozens of other members of the balcony audience,! I refused to buy a programme for the first time in over 50 years' theatregoing in London. As to the ...

... Dear Sir. One hesitates to tell anyone so eminent as Mr. Alasdair Milne. Controller of BBC Scotland, that he is talking nonsense. But when he tells his audience, at a Meet the Author Conference at Edin burgh. that I would wish the BBC to compel the writer to write about only good wholesome sub jects then I have no option. Mr. Milne goes on to say that this attitude, with which he wrongly ...

... The Unknown playwright SIR, As a young writer* I send to various managements the scripts ol my plays. To date, I have had no luck with these, buj I shall not jump on the bandwagon of those who say that because you are an unknown, managements just don't want to know. However, it seems to me ithat if the play you send out to manage ment A is returned with a most non committal letter which merely ...

... In defence of Westerns Dear Sir, With reference to your editorial in your issue of August 28. I feel compelled to spring to the defence of the western film. It has been, after all, the most consistently popular of all filmed entertainment. And while I have admired and enjoyed the classic productions of John Ford and others, I would like to put in a special word of praise for the good double ...

... Credits for Z cars Dear Sir, gt Allan Prior suggests in his letter that he has correctly allocated the credits for Z Cars --but surely there are a couple of curious omissions. All of us actors and tech nicians who work on weekly live series know the invaluable work that can be done by a iood story editor, yet Allan Prior does not mention either the fact that John Hopkins held this post, nor ...