Not just royal spin
For those who have never ridden off-road in harsh conditions the princes’ 1,000-mile African bike trip might seem like a jolly (News, last week) but it will be a long hard ride which will test them both. This is no spin down the M4. Good luck to them.

Alex Dunn
Twickenham, Middlesex

Savage reporting
The way the British press savages the royals, I’m pretty sure that if they were around for the Second Coming and saw Jesus walking on water the headlines the next day would shout: “Jesus returns – still can’t swim”.

Rod Baker
Cape Town, South Africa

Taliban and Pakistan
I should like to clarify our position on your report Taliban chief killed by SAS was ‘Pakistan officer’ (World News, October 12). Since the time of the incident Pakistan has asked Isaf (International Security Assistance Force) officials for details or the identity of the person killed (allegedly belonging to the Pakistan military) so that investigations could be held at our end. There have been promises but, despite repeated reminders, no evidence has been provided so far. There is no question that an officer of the organisation could go missing and his whereabouts not be known.

Imran Gardezi
Pakistan High Commission

Sustainable sushi
Your article Bluefin tuna fished close to extinction (News, Last week) was accompanied by a photograph of a sushi restaurant. We wish to make it clear that YO! Sushi has never sold bluefin tuna and never will because it is an endangered species and we follow recommendations by the Marine Stewardship Council to offer sustainable, approved and certified wild fisheries products.

Alison Vickers
Business Development Director, YO! Sushi World

Tudor shame
Many viewers will share David Starkey’s verdict on The Tudors (News Review, last week). It shamed the BBC. Bad history, a silly script and hammy performances. Goodness knows what persuaded Peter O’Toole to be part of it. Shedloads of money? Movie Mail, a film and television mail order company, describes it as high on sex and intrigue. Historical accuracy is not the order of the day, the emphasis instead is on entertainment, sexual shenanigans and high-stakes plotting. Whoever bought it for BBC should be given a different job.

William G Stewart
New Malden, Surrey

Madonna overexposed
One of the unforeseen advantages of Madonna’s return to New York and the end to her Anglophile experiment will be a reduction in the number of related articles such as the one by India Knight proffered last week (News Review). For this relief, much thanks.

Marie-Claire Dibbern
Kelso