29 AUGUST 1987, Page 19

Racing green

Sir: Nigella Lawson's piece on sandwiches in the City (1 August) implies that 'British Racing Green' is a particular shade of green; it is not — although green is the British colour for racing cars, you can use any shade of green you like.

The original British racing colour was red, and the use of green dates from around 1903 when the British leg of the Gordon Bennett European motor racing championship had to be staged in Ireland because of the four miles per hour max- imum speed limit then imposed in Britain. Green has been used ever since, but the shades have varied from near black to the pale silvery green of the early BRMs.

Mike Hardwidge

44 Ennismore Avenue, London W4