I WOULD like to thank D Wardell for his dystopian letter about Bishopthorpe Road. It gives me an opportunity to write a letter on a subject other than the privatisation by stealth of the NHS.

I grew up the 1950s and 1960s, when everything was still in black and white, and moved to the Bishopthorpe Road area in the early 1970s.

By then the number of butchers was down to two as supermarkets took hold. Times change and the types of shops change also. I remember a second-hand book shop, a wool shop, an Italian restaurant and a home-brew shop.

We no longer need a Chinese laundry, as most of us have washing machines now. Looking down Mr Wardell’s list – although the post office is sadly missed – I see that most of the shops we need are still represented by their modern equivalent, and a family can still do all their daily shopping there.

What’s more the shopkeepers and restaurateurs are almost without exception friendly and enthusiastic. I think we are lucky to have such a comprehensive selection of shops who work together to produce a sense of community and we should celebrate the fact.

I’m glad D Wardell finds the good old days in the 1950s and 1960s; for me the memory makes me shudder occasionally.

Keep up the good work, Bishy Road.

Keith Gailer, Bewlay Street, York.