I use it all the time. In fact I was staying at an airbnb recently and my hair dye stained all his towels and pillow cases (a week after I got it done!) so I gave them a good bleaching before I left and left them sparkling white.
Ok, just to clarify, do people say "bleach" when the mean products containing sodium percarbonate (like Vanish, OxiClean)? Or do you mean actual bleach (as in sodium hypochlorite)?
Actual bleach. I typically use oxi-clean, very rarely use bleach. I've found that even the most severe staining/yellowing can be removed by soaking the clothes in the washer overnight with oxi-clean (something that's not really possible with front loader machines).
Well, I mostly use things like Vanish/OxiClean, but there are times when I hit proper bleach - but admittedly that one is rare enough (especially since switching to coloured bedsheets) that I do not keep bottle of sodium hypochlorite on hand.