With all the hype about the latest Robin Hood film, it reminded me of those halcyon days as a child watching Richard Greene romping around Sherwood Forest in his monochrome Lincoln Green tights, and the whoosh, thud of his arrow hitting the tree in the opening credits.

But there have been many suggestions as to who this man really was. A freedom fighter? A patriot? Or simply an outlaw out for what he could get?

Just as we had black-and-white televisions when I was a child, it's not that long ago that few people could read or write.

Stories were passed down the years by word of mouth, and just as the game of Chinese whispers can corrupt words, has the same happened with Robin Hood? The Oxford English dictionary defines a hood as a gangster. Certain dubious young people who wear a hooded top are often referred to as hoodies.

I therefore have to ask – was Robin Hood a good guy? Or simply a Robbing Hood?

John Ward, Pinfold Terrace, Tollerton, York.