THE Diary is delighted to find a message of support waiting for us at our luxurious Walmgate office suite.

Our enthusiasm is barely dented when we realise it is a further dispatch from Planet Chav.

"Sittin ere on Kappa Crescent in my Voxall Chavette downin my 20th Speshal Brew," begins the faxed missive.

"I fort I'd rite to the diary cos your column is so grate. After all u dun for us chavs they should call it 'The Chav Diary Of The North' an get Kappa or Donnay to sponser it.

"By the way in case u fink I'm drink driving, I'm not, my chavette as bin on bricks in our front gardin since 1978.

"Better go now as our Chav Jnr has just found me one of them lapdog computers wot sumone kinly left on there car seat.

"Chav Senior."

And there's even a PS.

"Can u menshun my favrite song in your Chav Top 10 - it's Robbin Robbin Robbin by Chav & Dave."

OUR item a month ago about the publication of a picture of Rowntree's factory in 1956 continues to bring a response.

Betty Harvey, from Boroughbridge Road, is one of those on the photo.

"What a surprise it was to see a picture of former colleagues and myself," she writes.

"I can remember the picture being taken, 48 years ago, when I was working for Rowntree's chocolate factory on machine number 18 in the 'enrobing room'.

"Our job in the enrobing room, which housed more than 300 workers, was to hand decorate all the sweets as the passed by on conveyors.

"From the photograph I could see Mary Pethalist, myself, Betty Harvey (ne Taylor), Helen, Dot Birch and Barbara. With their backs to the camera are Jean Rogers and Mary and Violet Kears.

"Unfortunately over the years I've forgotten all their surnames, but I have many fond memories of my time there and all the good friends I made."

THE Diary was fascinated by our Education Page piece yesterday about Lowfield School pupils teaching younger children old fashioned playground games. We can remember "tiggy off ground" and "what's the time, Mr Wolf".

Girls could spend their whole lunch hour skipping to ludicrous rhymes (the precursor of today's rap music).

Can any readers remember other playground games? What about those skipping rhymes? We'd love to hear from you.

FAIR play to First in York, a company which takes its share of stick (and some stones in Chapelfields). When a passenger complained that a bus had driven past without stopping, the firm promptly wrote back to say sorry, and enclosed free travel vouchers.

Unfortunately the letter was not word perfect. It included these howlers: "may I apologize"; "signaled"; "all our staff is trained to the highest standard"; "four single journey's".

We suggest the bus firm switches off its American spell-checker - then finds its way to the nearest dictionary.

Updated: 09:14 Thursday, February 10, 2005