“But the thing I admired most in him is that rarest of gifts – a politician without an ounce of cynicism” ~ Nick Clegg Ex-LibDem leader Paddy Ashdown died yesterday, having only been diagnosed with bladder cancer very recently.  He was mourned by politicians of all shades and persuasions, as a generally good egg in […]

Categories: Obituary

George H.W. Bush (1924 – 2018) Another former president of the United States of America died this week: the elder Bush.  Contemplating his life takes us nostalgically back to an era when progress seemed to be happening in the world… George Herbert Walker Bush was well prepared for his role as president, having built his […]

Categories: Historical · Obituary

Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha Profile of a Philanthropist Week long funeral ceremonies are under way in Thailand for the owner of Leicester Football Club Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, who died in a helicopter accident while leaving a local match at 8.30 p.m. on Saturday 27th October.  He seems to have been a very special man, charitable and well loved, […]

Categories: Astrology · Obituary · Sport

Charles Aznavour (1924 – 2018) “He knew that the real France was a France of welcome.  This son of immigrants, who had not studied, knew that in France … the French language was a sanctuary more sacred than any other.” ~ Emmanuel Macron Charles Aznavour, popularly known as the French Frank Sinatra, was born in […]

Categories: Celebrities · Obituary

Fenella Fielding (1927 – 2018) “She reminds me of the great raconteur Quentin Crisp – the same love of language, mastery of its rhythms, perfectly formed sentences, and a joie de vivre even when relating her profound despair.” –  The Guardian Fenella Fielding may well have been before your time, dear reader.  But in my […]

Categories: Celebrities · Obituary

Aretha Franklin (1942 – 2018) “Her voice could scald or soothe, singing with equal intimacy and intensity to her God or a faithless lover” ~ Richard Williams, The Guardian Aretha Franklin died on Thursday this week, two days before Kofi Annan (see earlier blog).  She has, with the golden strength of her voice, been described […]

Categories: Celebrities · Obituary

Kofi Annan “Wherever there was suffering or need, he reached out and touched many people with his deep compassion and empathy” ~ The Kofi Annan Foundation Kofi Annan, an icon of diplomacy, departed this world this week, almost universally loved and respected, someone who did his best to make the world a better place. Birth […]

Categories: Icons · News · Obituary

Jeremy Thorpe (1929 – 2014) Jeremy Thorpe, erstwhile leader of the Liberal Party, has been in the public eye lately.  With the production of A Very English Scandal, starring Hugh Grant as Thorpe and Ben Whishaw as Norman Scott, portraying the scandal which ended his career, and a new investigation into the scandal under way, […]

Categories: Celebrities · Fixed Stars · Karmic · Obituary

Stephen Lawrence Today  is the 25th anniversary of Stephen Lawrence’s death by a gang of white youths at a bus stop in London in 1993.  Last week, a special historical investigation was screened in three parts on television.  The memory, impact and poignancy of his death is as relevant today as ever, for knife crime […]

Categories: News · Obituary

Winnie Madikizela-Mandela (1936 – 2018) Winnie Mandela, the second wife of Nelson Mandela, died this week on Monday, 2nd April.  She played a vital role in the fight against apartheid in South Africa, and in freeing her husband after his lengthy period of imprisonment for nearly three decades from 1962 to 1990.  She managed to […]

Categories: Historical · Obituary