Letter: Lost TV treasures

Sir: I was astonished to see no mention of the superb series The Ascent of Man with Jacob Bronowski in your report about the loss of "classic" television programmes (8 October). The loss of a couple of episodes of Ready, Steady, Go bears no comparison with the disappearance of this magnificent production, which easily rivals Kenneth Clark's Civilisation. The latter has gone on to worldwide commercial success.

My own inquiries with the BBC about the availability of The Ascent of Man have always been met with, "There is no information currently available about that item," which I believe is Beebspeak for "We've lost it, chum." If this is indeed the reality, then the loss of all the other so-called "top twenty" pales into insignificance.

CLIVE MANSBRIDGE

St Augustine, Florida, USA