OBITUARIES

[Thomo]

A true Gentleman and a good friend.

[Moh]

I was sorry to read about the death of Moira Ward (nee Bracewell) wife of Tom Ward (who sometimes drops in on the site). I went to school with Moira at Skipton GHS, I believe she became a primary school teacher in Barlick. If you look in Tom My condolences. Maureen (nee Nutter).

[Stanley]

Sorry to hear about that.... I didn't know his wife but Tom worked at Bristol Tractors when I was open all hours at Sough and I used to pull mother's leg, she always had a soft spot for him.

[Wendyf]

RIP David Bowie.

[Marilyn]

Shock! Can't believe it!

[Cathy]

A very clever and talented man. Lots of people will be gutted.
RIP David Bowie (Davy Jones).

[Moh]

Sorry to hear about that.... I didn't know his wife but Tom worked at Bristol Tractors when I was open all hours at Sough and I used to pull mother's leg, she always had a soft spot for him.

I don't blame your mum Stanley, Tom was a lovely guy when he played the piano for our local concerts.

[PanBiker]

Alan Rickman (69) a very talented actor and an ace baddie.

[Cathy]

I remember him from Love Actually '. He was very good.

[Marilyn]

I agree...an ace baddie. I liked everything he did...

[LizG]

Loved him as the Sheriff in Robin Hood Prince of Thieves.

[PanBiker]

"cancel Christmas".

RIP Alan Rickman

[Tripps]

The last couple of weeks have made me think / confirm that I'm a total 'outsider'.

I have genuinely never previously heard of Lemmy, or Alan Rickman, and my relationship with David Bowie was similar to that of one North pole of a magnet with another one. Why on earth would anyone want to wear platform boots, and paint their face? The news coverage of his death was quite amazing.

[Tizer]

If it's any consolation Tripps, I feel I'm an outsider too, for similar reasons. However, as far as Bowie is concerned, I think his songs were brilliant and I don't care if he wanted to dress differently. By all accounts he was a very pleasant individual and had a good sense of humour. I'd rather have encountered someone with those characteristics, regardless of painted face and platform boots, than a shiny suited member of the banking executive fraternity who oversees the collapse of the financial world and makes old ladies buy expensive `financial products' they don't need. Another reason I'm an outsider is that I don't watch much TV and don't follow sport. But in an earlier era I'd probably get dragged out and hung from the nearest tree for being `strange'.

[PanBiker]

I can maybe understand you not knowing Lemmy Tripps but Alan Rickman I find hard to imagine you have never seen on Film, TV or Stage. We must watch different films.

[Stanley]

I was familiar with Lemmy because I like Motorhead....I must have seen Rickman but not connected the name. But on the whole I am on the same wavelength as David and Tiz, my interests are completely different..... Good when you're buying second hand books because the ones that attract you are not in demand.....

[Marilyn]

Grizzly Adams (I once had impure thoughts about him)..
Tripps...what can I say? Bowie was a legend. But I would likely feel as you do if someone from my parent's hero list died...or my son's hero list for that matter

[Tripps]

De mortuis nil nisi bonum and all that - but is this really a man who should be your hero?

Bowie was, and has been, more candid about his drug use during this period than most of his contemporaries, and various associates have fleshed out the picture. ‘I’ve had short flirtations with smack and things,’ he told Cameron Crowe in 1975, ‘but it was only for the mystery and the enigma. I like fast drugs. I hate anything that slows me down.’ So open was his drug use that the normally bland British pop newspaper Record Mirror felt safe in 1975 to describe Bowie as ‘old vacuum-cleaner nose’. His girlfriend in 1974/75, Ava Cherry, recounted that ‘David has an extreme personality, so his capacity [for cocaine] was much greater than anyone else’s.’ ‘I’d found a soulmate in this drug,’ Bowie told Paul Du Noyer in 2002. ‘Well, speed [amphetamines] as well, actually. The combination.’ The drugs scarred his personal relationships, twisted his view of himself and the world, and sometimes delayed recording sessions, as Bowie waited for his dealer to arrive. As live tapes from 1974 demonstrated, they also had a profound effect on his vocal range. Yet the effect on his creativity was minimal: cocaine took its toll on his internal logic, not his abilities to make music.


I think I'll stick with my own opinion of him.

[Tizer]

I've never considered Bowie `my hero' nor have I been a `fan'. I haven't followed his career, never had any of his music on tape, disc etc but I did respect his big contribution to modern popular music. He may not have been perfect in his personal life but he seems to have been better than many other `pop stars'.

Having commented about the `painted face' it made me wonder about people's attitudes to this compared with tattoos. At least he could wash off his painted face whenever he wished whereas there are many folk going around painted with permanent tattoos and punctured with piercings.

[Stanley]

I once told the kids I had a butterfly on my bum. They were most impressed but in the end I had to come clean......

[Tizer]

Did they threaten to make you prove it?

[Cathy]

I'm often surprised how many women actually have a tattoo. Sometimes on women that I would least expect to have one, I often glimpse a butterfly on their ankle or something small tattooed on the inside of their wrist. It can look quite pretty when done well.

[PostmanPete]

My wife has a map of Britain tattooed on her back. You always know where you are with her.......!

[Stanley]

It never got that far Tiz, I came clean and admitted I was winding them up.....

[Marilyn]

I cant fathom why anyone would want a tattoo...