Guardian letters:
Indeed, directing so successfully the first performance in English of Waiting for Godot at the Arts Theatre in 1955 put Peter Hall in a unique position to lead British theatre, as he has, for the next 50 years (Godot almighty, August 24). But he should have mentioned that his luck was really due to the brilliance of the young Sasha Moorsom (later Lady Young of Dartington), who brought him the play, in French, in 1954, having got it from her friend, the French actor Roger Blin. He was recovering in St Tropez from the stress of playing Lucky. And we were all young contemporaries of Peter's at Cambridge, holidaying there that summer. It's good to acknowledge these connections.
Margaret Owen (Salisbury, Wilts), 27 August
No wonder Roger Blin was "recovering" after En Attendant Godot (Letters, August 27). He not only played Pozzo (not Lucky, who was played by Jean Martin), but he also directed the play - and the first production at the Théâtre Babylone in Paris had more than 300 performances.
Apropos the name Godot: I listened to Peter Hall recently on Radio 4 and he made no mention of the fact that the two tramps originally wore bowler hats, and the clowning (donning/doffing/inspecting the hats) might connect Godot with Charlot (as the French affectionately call Charlie Chaplin). Among other stories of Godot's provenance is one that Beckett told Blin the name suggested itself from the slang godilot and godasse (boot). Another is that Beckett was inspired at a Tour de France by spectators who said they were still waiting for the final and eldest cyclist: "Nous attendons Godot." Beckett wrote in a letter "Je ne sais pas qui est Godot."
Diana Fernando (Wissett, Suffolk), 5 September
Diana Fernando (Letters, September 5) fails to cite the provenience that Godot is a corrupted Anglicised diminutive form of the word God.
Chris Bleakley (Prague), 6 September
Re Godot (Letters, September 6): Balzac's play Mercadet (Le Faiseur) has a potential saviour who fails to appear, and is called Godeau.
Ray Walsh (Liverpool), 7 September
