It is wonderful to see the letter from the Betjeman Society published today, 21 July 2023, alongside two others about the life and work of JB.

This has been an interesting week! Apart from the fact most of the papers and the BBC on 19 July reported on the release of archives relating to the choice of Poet Laureate in 1967 we can blame officially as it were, Lord Goodman and Dame Helen Gardner for confirming the snobbery about JB’s poetry, or versifying as some of the correspondence states. The papers are very interesting about the views of JB as a poet and a host of others whether it is the ‘wild man of Majorca’ (Robert Graves) or Ted Hughes who is regarded as too ‘disorganised’, or George Barker who wrote too much pornography!.

Still JB comes out very well and the spoof poem tribute in the Times Leader is very welcome. Who would have thought this could have been arranged so soon after our AGM! Perhaps we should thank the National Archives at Kew!