5 APRIL 1997, Page 29

More last words

Sir: It seems probable that your Alastair Forbes is the same as the one referred to in the correspondence of Evelyn Waugh and Diana Cooper. A footnote in Mr Wu and Mrs Stitch (edited by Artemis Cooper, Hod- der & Stoughton, 1991) reads: 'Alastair Forbes (b. 1918), journalist. Diana [Coop- er] always maintained he was a spy, her evi- dence being that he reads a great many newspapers, speaks several languages, and knows more about everyone than anyone should.'

Richard Boston

The Old School, Aldworth, Berkshire