Sir, - There appears to be such a shortage of news in the current "silly season" that The Irish Times must repeat the same trivial items on successive days in order to pad out the paper.
On Monday, August 11th, on page four, you printed a short item under the heading "Ballinspittle statue reported moving". On Wednesday, August 13th, this "news" was again reported in the page one summary items, and dealt with in a longer report on page 11.
On Tuesday, August 12th, we are treated in the page one summary items to a photograph of Princess Diana, and a mention of a poll for the Sun newspaper. On Page 11, under the heading "Poll indicates support for British royals plummeting", and with a different photograph, we have a full article on this poll. On Wednesday August 13th, under the heading "Support for royal family slumps below 50 per cent, you have the same article, almost but not quite, identically phrased (but no photograph).
Perhaps The Irish Times should consider publishing every second day during August, or should publish a shorter daily paper costing 40p. - Yours, etc.,
Elizabeth Doherty,
St. Alban's Mews, Dublin 4.