Anna Tims’ feature on appalling customer service (17 April) omits to mention two of the most common, disingenuous and irritating recorded responses to telephone inquiries, which are “Please hold, your call is very important to us” (it clearly isn’t) and “Your call will be answered shortly” (invariably it won’t be). As for the on-hold music, some honesty could be introduced by playing Blondie’s Hanging on the Telephone.
Adrian Brodkin
London
Your Easter editorial (17 April) mentioned Douglas Adams’ 42 as the answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything. In a way it is, because expressed in binary notation 42 is 101010, an index of a repeating “yes-no” fluctuation surely at the root of much cosmology and fundamental physics.
Brian Smith
Berlin, Germany
Watching the emergency debate in parliament last Saturday, I was amazed at the number of MPs using their mobile phones. We debate whether phones should be banned in schools, so why is their use in the chamber not prohibited?
Christine Walters
Buxton, Derbyshire
Thank you for the marriage-themed prize crossword (12 April), which we enjoyed completing on our golden wedding anniversary. Who told you?
Colin and Cyndy Patey
Ashby de la Zouch, Leicestershire
