Roman Kemp

28-year old Roman Kemp has just made a documentary about mental health.  I usually try to vary my blogs, but it is looking like Mental Health month here now…first Meghan Markle, then Caroline Flack, and now Roman.  He was driven to make this programme “Our Silent Emergency”, which aired last week, by the death (by suicide) of his buddy Joe Lyons.  There is concern that particularly young males are vulnerable to suicidal thoughts and feelings, and of course a year’s worth of lockdowns has exacerbated all mental health issues.  Roman has himself suffered depression, and talks in the film about how he was able to talk to his mother Shirlie to some extent about his feelings, but wants to encourage young men to open up more.  In the documentary, he explored what can be done to help, and also the effect on those left behind when there is a suicide.

I will keep this blog short…firstly, there is not much to go on, because Joe’s birth date isn’t recorded online (though I have a possible date), and secondly because I wrote a blog about the Kemp family (Martin, Shirlie, Roman plus Gary) in 2019.

I wrote in 2019:

“Roman Kemp is the younger of their [Martin and Shirlie’s] two children, and is currently appearing in I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here.  He normally works as a radio presenter.  So far in the Jungle he has revealed that it was his Nan’s suggestion that Gary bring Martin into the band Spandau Ballet, and that he has seen a UFO.  He describes his father as his best friend.   Martin’s Sun is conjunct Roman’s Jupiter, which suggests a shared sense of humour.  They have a karmic link, in Martin’s Ascendant sextile Roman’s North Node.  George Michael was Roman’s godfather.”

Of his recent claim to have suffered depression, one would look mainly at the planets Saturn, Pluto and Neptune in a birth chart.  He has Sun and Mercury trine Jupiter, plus Mars square Jupiter in his chart, which are quite upbeat.  He admits that their work together (Joe as a radio producer) was to produce laughter.  Where he might experience depression is in his conjunction of Mercury with Saturn, a propensity to overthink things perhaps or to look on the bleak side at times.  Neptune squares his natal Jupiter, meaning that he can get confused about existential beliefs regarding religion and spirituality.  And Saturn square Pluto is a difficult square when facing the realities of life.

The two working colleagues were very close, and Roman could not believe he did not spot how much Joe was hurting.  His death hit Roman very hard, and has resulted in galvanizing Roman into making this programme.  His shock at Joe’s death (the news of which came while Roman was on air) shows the following transits for Roman:

Mars sextile Roman’s Saturn (some harsh news); Mars square his natal Uranus (a sudden shock); Mars square his Neptune (great sensitivity); Mars trine his North Node (a karmic event involving a fellow warrior in life); Jupiter on his Uranus/Neptune (more surprise and sensitivity, though not of the right kind); and Uranus sextile his natal Mars (more surprise and shock).

Joe Lyons

Joe was a talented young radio producer, aged 31 when he departed.  Although his birth date is not recorded, I found a tweet for May 24th 2020 in which he mentions sharing a birthday on that day with someone.  So I have looked at that as a possible chart for his birth.

If accurate, Joe would have had Mercury square Saturn, which can sometimes result in depression,  Moon square Neptune, which is very imaginative, and Mars conjunct Chiron which can hold some wounding.  In his bond with Roman he would have had a brotherly sextile between his Mercury and Roman’s Mars, and a laughter filled opposition between his Jupiter and Roman’s Sun.  His pressures at the time he took his life would have included Pluto opposing his natal Chiron.  However, bear in mind that may not be his birthchart at all.

You probably know of a similar tragic case.  Back in the 1970s, I worked for two years in a Psychiatric Unit.  In the early ’80s, a Senior Charge Nurse from that Unit took his own life.  That event affected me deeply, and I began to feel that some young men were extremely vulnerable…perhaps they did not have the emotional resources, or the faith in life, or ability to reach out.  I took the decision to stop doing astrological readings for this group for a while, a few years in fact.  Eventually I reached a place where I felt it was more useful to do the charts than not.

Roman’s programme has been well-received.  Talking about his conclusions in an interview, Roman said that it was important not to take for granted that people were O.K.; people around them should always encourage them to talk about their feelings.

Samaritans:

https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/contact-samaritan/

Aspects

Venus enters Aries this afternoon, joining the Sun in the early degrees of that sign.  For many, that will be a signal to go forth boldly.  Venus types may feel that they are being pushed to a faster pace of life than they are comfortable with.  There is a warmer and more demonstrative feel about Venus while she is in Aries, but hugs are still not allowed in the present climate.  Venus stays in Aries until 14th April.

Late tonight, Mercury will be sextile with Uranus, giving rise to spectacular and unusual communications.  This encourages us to use all the new technology for our communications, and brings new ideas, heightening intuition and telepathy.   This aspect can amaze you and help you find that “wow” factor.  Occurring so close to bedtime in the U.K., the flashing forth of new ideas may keep you awake in the early hours!

Tomorrow (Monday 22nd) Mars trines Saturn, which favours practical action, and works that are deliberately planned and executed.  Hard work can pay off.  So far, so good!

A trickier aspect occurs on Wednesday (24th) when Mars squares Mercury.  If you’ve been sailing along on a bright new health and fitness regime, be careful not to overdo things as you may be slightly incident-prone, partly through carelessness or complacency.  Another possible hazard of this square is argumentativeness and verbal conflict.

Mercury squares the Nodal Axis on Thursday (25th): this brings in a karmic theme including karmic information, and the need to attend to detail in your work and communications.  A time of karmic recalibration, especially in relation to groups.  A phrase we are hearing a lot is “After this is all over…”  It is time to make a list!  And put into practice what we can do now.

Friday (26th) puts the spotlight on those twinned influences, Venus and Mars.  First up, a conjunction between the Sun and Venus at 6 degrees Aries.  If you are an artist or a musician, it is the day you can produce your best creative output or performance.  If neither, then love or money may be beneficiaries of this combination.

Then Mars conjoins the North Node at 13 degrees Gemini.  This brings to the fore warrior karma, e.g. standing up for your rights.  Street protests may be in the news, for instance.  With Mars conjunct the North Node, we see the karmic results of our actions straight away, giving us the wisdom of knowing, instant-karma style, whether or not we are doing things the right way.  With the Sun in Aries, directness and impulsiveness are currently in the air anyway, but it’s a good time to practise conscious interaction with integrity.

The week in bullet points:

  • Today – warm feelings; intelligent ideas
  • Tomorrow – practical action
  • Wednesday – incident-prone
  • Thursday – karmic information
  • Friday – arty crafty; honing the inner warrior