The Beatles beat The Bachelors for fabness every time
DiD The Bachelors really keep The Beatles off the No 1 slot on more than one occasion, as reader S. Henderson (Letters) suggests?
According to the New Musical Express, The Bachelors did not have any No 1 records.
Though they were a successful mid- Sixties trio, their highest position in the charts was No 2 with Diane on February 29, 1963, and i Believe on April 4, 1963.
i Believe was, in fact, stalled at No 2 by The Beatles’ Can’t Buy Me Love for two weeks in 1964 (April 4 and 11). As The Beatles had an unbroken run of 12 No 1s, from Please Please Me on February 23, 1963 (as stated in four national music papers and the BBC’s official charts) to Yellow Submarine/ Eleanor Rigby ( a double A-side hit) on August 20, 1966, it would not have been possible for The Bachelors to have kept the Fab Four off the top position.
After the relative ‘flop’ of a 1967 No 2, Strawberry Fields Forever/ Penny Lane, The Beatles had another seven consecutive No 1s until Something/Come Together reached a modest No 5 in 1969.
Apologies to Mr Henderson, but his memory — or perhaps his love of The Bachelors — must have played tricks with him. But thanks for giving me the chance to look back over some great music.
Mick Jones, northfleet, kent.
Utterly mad
iN TREE-MAgEDDoN (Mail), there is a form of madness at work. Healthy trees planted in memory of those who gave their lives during World War i have paid the ultimate price by being felled for no good reason.
indeed, it is the absence of common sense — a rare thing these days — that puts money before the health of those who used to live in tree-lined splendour, but now have to stare out on — well, nothing.
Trees mean life, healthy life, and wellbeing for those who see them and live close to them. Those who authorised the felling should go back to school to be taught basic biology and the reason trees are here with us humans.
DaviD Harvey, chippenham, Wilts.
Labour’s lost it
THE Labour Party approach to this election will be to emphasise the gap between those that ‘have’ and those that ‘have not’.
Yet we never hear how Labour policies are to be paid for — free university, billions more into health, more money for social care, free school meals, £500 billion for infrastructure and more. What planet do they inhabit?
There is a total misapprehension that the deficit can be matched by taxing companies and entrepreneurs at higher rates.
if they do this, they kill the one area that actually pays for these services. There is a need to re- balance the differentials between workers and management, but in the end this surely has to be left to the investors in these organisations?
By lowering tax, the Treasury actually increases revenues. The higher-rate tax on high earners proved to be a loser in the last Labour parliament. Though it might suit the Labour conscience, it does nothing for the country.
keitH Hearn, aberystwyth. MRS May is certainly going to make hay while the sun shines.
Who can blame her when the socalled opposition is in such chaos? in order to come anywhere near winning power, Labour needs to win back all those seats north of the Border. i wonder what the likes of Prescott and Kinnock are saying in private. i bet the swear box at Labour HQ is overflowing. teD sHePHerD, address supplied.
Brexit in danger
i AM devastated Mrs May is putting a brilliant hard-won Brexit victory at risk. i was still floating on cloud nine with the joy that my 44- year fight for sovereign nationhood had been won.
Now trepidation again that all the Liberals, Lords, Remainers in tactical mode, will be back in the Project Fear media.
A rock-hard Brexit in our sights, new passports, no money going out, no migrants coming in, fishing rights restored, gibraltar safe, so many brilliant world trade prospects with our Commonwealth friends — all at stake again!
An SNP, Labour, Liberal coalition reversing Brexit is now a democratic possibility. That would be madness and lead to a total breakdown of society.
tony PiPe-Pyrne, kidderminster, Worcs.
For locals only
MAiLiNg a package to Australia, i was amazed my local post office only had customs forms in Welsh — not bilingual, just Welsh.
As these forms are only used on packages to foreign countries, that’s fine if one is sending something to the small part of Patagonia where Welsh is spoken. it’s not so good elsewhere without making customs officers worldwide study Welsh! tony Horan, Milford Haven, Pembs.
Mum’s the word
HAviNg read about Prince Harry and his anguish over his mother’s death, i recalled my experience.
i was ten, went off to school in the morning, came home for lunch and the house was full of vicars, grandparents and neighbours.
i was told my Dad had died very suddenly that morning. Naturally it sent me reeling. But i was sent back to school for the afternoon. i cried in class until the teacher told me to stop snivelling.
it was more than 60 years ago, but that day has stayed with me. Counselling was unheard of, and it seems the adults were as much to blame as anyone for my plight.
i suppose it was stiff upper-lip ideals back then, but all i wanted was arms around me and a voice saying they understood.
At least Harry has been able to talk about things. i wish him all the best. Ms J. c. PinDer, east Huntspill, somerset.
Grammar schools
i DoN’T understand why we’re having so much discussion about the less well-off when it comes to grammar schools. The great thing about grammarsmmars was tha that any pupil who passed the 11-plus exam was eligible for a place regardless.
it was unfortunate that the system gained a bad reputation because the alternative schools were called ‘secondary moderns’.
Now at least those who fail the exam or don’t wish to attend a grammar school will go to a comprehensive which has become accepted as standard. norMan WanstaLL,
Burford, Worcs.
Sadiq Khan’t talk
THE Mayor of London has written to me warning me not to bring my smelly diesel car into London. Yet he sends diesel lorries though my village carrying London waste to landfill. Bloody cheek! DaviD eDWarDs, Great Billington, Beds.
End this barbarism
i ALSo condemn the practice of halal slaughter (Letters). our methods of slaughter have evolved to incorporate our belief that we should do everything possible to ease the suffering of the animals.
if people want to live in our country, they should leave this barbaric practice behind.
r croft, edenthorpe, s. yorks.