A playboy defined
Sir: Michael Cole writes, (Letters, 13 September), `Dodi was no more of a play- boy than Mr Glover.' According to my Collins dictionary, a playboy is 'a man, esp. one of private means, who devotes himself to the plea- sures of nightclubs, expensive holiday resorts, female company etc.' If Mr Cole is right, presumably the definition should continue on the lines of, 'faxes, for a small fee, his copy to The Spectator each week from his Neasden pied-h-terre, dines in plush restaurants with his contacts in Lon- don, claiming the bill back on expenses (including costs of taxi or bus transport with carefully kept receipts), etc.' Mr Cole also writes, `Dodi will live on in my memory for his courtesy, good humour and unfailing good manners — hardly play- boy characteristics'. But surely those are exactly the attributes one expects of a play- boy. Charm is his defining characteristic. He charms his girlfriends with his boats, houses and helicopters before finally laugh- ing them into bed. But then if Mr Cole is right we had better ask Mr Glover, as, in his playboy fashion, he tickles the girls into bed with luxurious hints at what might appear in the next edi- tion of The Spectator.
William Sitwell
320 Westbourne Park Road, London W11
Previous page
