Mohammed bin Nawaf Al Saud’s attempt to present Saudi Arabia as a bastion of freedom of expression and of fair and humane treatment of prisoners (Letters, 2 July) will surely have produced a hollow laugh from the family and supporters of Raif Badawi, sentenced to years in prison and 1,000 lashes for the crime of blogging his opinions.

Jonathan Wallace

Newcastle upon Tyne

• My father, a carpenter, passed his driving test late in life. His pride and joy was a Morris Minor Traveller estate (Letters, passim), and he spent many hours sanding, staining and varnishing the woodwork. One day, while out driving, he was pulled over by a police car. What had he done wrong? Nothing. They wanted to know what he had done to make the frame look so good!

Sheila Westbury

Loughton, Essex

• Jonathan Aitken warns against “high-voltage egos” and “grandstanding” in a sermon the day after hosting a party for 220 people in the Old Bailey (Report, 2 July). Are we to assume he was being ironic?

Michael & the Rev Eileen Sanderson

Barnsley, South Yorkshire

• I object to your headline saying “Film allows us to escape our small lives” (Journal, 30 June). I do not wish to escape, nor do I consider my life small. I watch films to be enriched and entertained. On occasion this happens.

Grace Trevett

Cirencester, Gloucestershire

• While I enjoyed the article about the genius that was Peter Firmin (‘Magic to stimulate kids’ minds’: Bagpuss creator Firmin dies aged 89, 2 July), please do not pretend that anybody “created” Basil Brush.

Ann Hopkins

Norwich

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