Têtes à claques | Remote control curtains | Writer or author? | Lady Jane Grey | Life expectancy | Singing teacher’s praises

Regarding Marina Hyde’s reference to JD Vance and the German word Backpfeifengesicht, meaning “a face that is worthy of being slapped”, in French there is the similar concise expression tête à claque (There are 1,000 grotesque memes of JD Vance – and they’re all more likable than the real thing, 7 March).
Xavier Roche
London

• Fittingly, I read Adrian Chiles’s article (Remote controls, tumble dryers, documentaries … do we have to make everything so complicated?, 5 March) in a hotel room where the lights and curtains have to be operated by a tablet computer on the desk. I couldn’t wait to leave.
Anil Patel
London