8 JUNE 2002, Page 31

Waugh, not Wilde

From Malgot Nowinska Sir: Petronella Wyatt (Singular life, 1 June) refers to a short story about an old lady who plans a grand party but forgets to send out the invitations.

She attributes the story to Oscar Wilde, but in fact it was written by Evelyn Waugh in 1932. Incidentally, the story — called Bella Fleace Gave a Party — refers to a visit to the old lady by a trendy heir who 'wrote long and very amusing letters to all his friends describing his visit, and later translated his experiences into a short story for The Spectator'.

Margot Nowinska

Harrow-on-the-Hill, Middlesex