Perhaps if Storm Bert had been called Kraken or something suitably threatening, the meteorologically illiterate might have taken the warnings seriously (Forecasters and flood defences under scrutiny after UK’s Storm Bert ordeal, 25 November). If we must personalise cyclonic weather events rather than giving them semantically unladen numerical references such as 2024-30, for example, let’s at least choose names that reflect their destructive power. Bert sounds like a jovial uncle, which is probably why the warnings were ignored.
Michael Heaton
Warminster, Wiltshire
I admire Nell Frizzell’s zeal for throwing things away (Still hanging on to your old diaries and teenage photos? Chuck them out – and start to live, 24 November), but may I offer a word of caution to readers who are inspired to follow her? I’m in my mid-70s and I’ve kept a diary for over 50 years. Now that my memory isn’t what it used to be, these diaries provide refreshing entertainment.
Sam White
Lewes, East Sussex
Elizabeth Winder (Letters, 25 November) is right to draw attention to Liverpool’s International Slavery Museum. In the east, we have the fantastic Wilberforce House Museum in Hull, which, unlike Liverpool’s, will be open for the next three years.
David Cordingley
Lincoln
Among the worst offenders encouraging overuse of salt in cooking are TV chefs, who add it for no apparent reason but habit (The truth about salt: how to avoid one of the world’s biggest hidden killers, 24 November). When did you see a recipe for pasta that didn’t specify using salted water? Unnecessary!
Neil Angrave
London
