Toast

http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/joan-rivers-memorialized-london-train-station-article-1.1928965

<2 minutes in, looks at fingers> Oh shit, apparently I'm a bloke.

How about The United Kingdom of Wine (Wales, Ireland {Northern}, England)

The longer we go with no news of Clarissa Eden or Mary Wilson the more I begin to think their deaths may have gone tragically unnoticed. There both very old and on the fringes of fame in modern terms, Clarissa Eden being Britain's first lady before the majority of people alive today we're born. Mary Wilson was a published poet as well, so I can't see her not getting an obit. Neither of them were ever "First Lady", incidentally. The UK is a monarchy, so if that title were to be used, it would be held by the Queen [/pedantry]

I agree. "Reach out to"? Do you share an office with them? It's an expression I've picked up since I moved to the U.S. It's only in the last year or two that I've been hearing it. No doubt it's been in use for a little longer in the USA.

I think we all missed Joan because we thought she was indestructible, being mostly plastic. (She may well have said this herself at some point) A legend indeed.

The expression "reach out to" when people mean "contact". It seems to have taken a hold recently. Makes me cringe. What's wrong with contact, speak to, write to, call etc? Reaching out to somebody suggests to me an unpleasant situation, like trying to rescue somebody who's fallen off a cliff or into a lake, or summat. It can also suggest offering sympathy, like a hug, which presupposes that something unpleasant has happened. Not picking on you in particular, Phantom, you just reminded me of it. You said: "I can reach out to the company that governs that server to find out who their administrator is." I would say: "I can ask the company that governs that server who their administrator is."

Why are people posting about politics in the 'Dead Pop Stars' thread?

She was a very funny stand-up comedian, Vaagy, razor-sharp and fearless. The world is a little duller for her loss. RIP Joan.

Thanks guys.

Roddy Armytage

hmmph, don't know why that didn't embed.

Bowie was apparently happily on stage with Kate Bush at her comeback concert today so maybe he isn't the tax exile in question either... That was just a rumour that somebody put on Twitter. What that he was on stage with Bush or that he was the tax exile? I just saw him as one of the three rock acts on the list of the top ten British tax exiles linked upthread so he was a possible suspect. That he was on stage with Bush. He's still very much a possibility, then... Well his sex life has not been entirely straight forward has it? Or he hasn't been entirely straightforward about his sex life? (by which I mean that I have read that the bisexuality thing was largely a pose)

It says 12.15 to me. Maybe your settings are on GMT?

I wouldn't have had a clue who they were meant to be. Unless he got his didgeridoo out.

How interesting, I never knew that. She's the mother-in-law of Richard Curtis as well. Good interview linked from wikipedia. There's always "Widow Shopping", but she's more noteworthy than that. Is there a thread for, say, "Muses and Inspirations"? I think that's a bit harsh. Given that he was known as Jack, and Lewis being a very common name, I think it's understandable that she didn't make the connection.

I guess he was too old to rock and roll, & wasn't too young to die. This was class.

I've no idea who either of them are, but I doubt that would be much comfort to them.

Where do you recommend starting? I did try The Colour of Magic (is that the first one?) but soon gave up as it didn't grab me. I have heard that this isn't considered to be a good one.

I've only just seen this. As mentioned before, this thread for some reason never shows up in "View New Posts" for me, so I missed it. Congratulations to Death Impends, well done. And thanks again to MPFC for the game.

Ah well, mustn't be greedy.

Any chance Dickie was ever in panto ...... ?

Dunno, that nationalism can be all the stronger because of that upbringing. I borrowed a tartan waiscoat from a "Scottish" mate who's lived in England his whole life but he's definitely a jock in everything from consuming scots products to willing them to thrash us at rugby. His dad was from Edinburgh, sort of the same thing as Rod. Princess Anne's always been a bit like that at the rugby. All on the strength of having a Scottish granny.

Here are mine 2008 Survivors - 1 Muhammad Ali Jamie Blandford (now the Duke of Marlborough) Liz Dawn P. D. James Meat Loaf John McCririck Lord Snowdon Cliff Michelmore Peter O'Sullevan Marguerite Patten 2009 Survivors - 1 Liz Dawn Freddie Jones Meat Loaf John McCririck Cliff Michelmore Peter O'Sullevan Marguerite Patten Lord Snowdon Jamie Blandford (now the Duke of Marlborough) 2010 Survivors - 2 Jamie Blandford (now the Duke of Marlborough) Ian Brady Paul Gascoigne Ruth Bader Ginsberg Stephen Hawking Liz Smith 2011 Survivors - 2 Dick Cheney Michael Douglas Aretha Franklin Stephen Hawking Guy Innes-Ker, Duke of Roxburghe Stephen Lewis Chris Woodhead 2012 Survivors - 0 Muhammad Ali Clive James Stephen Lewis Penny Marshall Leslie Phillips Jeremy Thorpe Chris Woodhead 2013 Survivors - 1 George H.W. Bush Stephen Hawking Doreen Keogh Stephen Lewis Leslie Phillips Neville Staple Freddie Starr Jeremy Thorpe 2014 Survivors - 3 Muhammad Ali Daisy Berkowitz Liz Dawn Helen Fawkes Caril Ann Fugate Valerie Harper Stephen Hawking Wilko Johnson Doreen Keogh Stephen Lewis Lindsay Lohan Tom O'Connor Michael Schumacher Sam Simon Freddie Starr Joost van der Westhuizen Chris Woodhead 2015 Survivors - 1 Lord Snowdon Caroline Aherne Muhammad Ali Rene Angelil Daisy Berkowitz King Bhumibol of Thailand Jacques Chirac Martin Crowe Colin Dexter Helen Fawkes Caril Ann Fugate Mary Tyler Moore Henry Sandon Freddie Starr Joost van der Westhuizen 2016 Survivors - 1 Geoffrey Bayldon Anthony Booth Baroness Campbell of Surbiton Jacques Chirac Daryl Dragon Fernando Ricksen Henry Sandon Peter Sarstedt Tom Watkins Joost van der Westhuizen 2017 Survivors - 1 Leah Bracknell Nick Boles Jill Gascoine Greg Gilbert Jeanne Mockford Joseph Ratzinger Fernando Ricksen Nobby Stiles 2018 Survivors - 2 Marieke Vervoort Leah Bracknell Jill Gascoine Greg Gilbert Jimmy Greaves Robin Herd John Hume Clive James Shane MacGowan Stirling Moss Willie Nelson Olivia Newton-John Linda Nolan Fernando Ricksen Nobby Stiles 2019 Survivors - 2 George Alagiah Robbie Coltrane Jill Gascoine Greg Gilbert Jimmy Greaves Dr. D.G. Hessayon John Hume Michael Lonsdale Shane MacGowan Willie Nelson Olivia Newton-John Sidney Poitier Nobby Stiles Katharine Whitehorn 2020 Survivors - 2 George Alagiah Phil Collins Robbie Coltrane Jimmy Greaves David Gulpilil Olivia Newton-John Yoko Ono Tom Smith Leon Spinks Peter Tobin Gianluca Vialli 2021 Survivors - 8 George Alagiah Robbie Coltrane Tim Curry Katharine, Duchess of Kent Prince Edward, Duke of Kent Phyllida Law Linda Nolan Yoko Ono Tom Parker Tom Smith Peter Tobin Bill Turnbull Hannah Wants James Whale 2022 Unusually I fielded 2 main teams this year. Team 1 - Survivors 8 George Alagiah Mohamed Al Fayed Michael Caine Marianne Faithfull Frank Field Michael Gambon Julie Goodyear Jean Marsh Mary Quant Jane Rossington CJ Sansom Norman Tebbit Frankie Valli James Whale Team 2 - Survivors 9 Rob Burrow Phil Collins Piers Corbyn Tim Curry Katharine, Duchess of Kent Prince Edward, Duke of Kent Yoko Ono Nigel Starmer-Smith Stella Stevens Ted Turner Joanne Woodward 2023 Survivors - 10 Princess Bajrakitiyabha Clive Brittain Rob Burrow Roberta Flack Rhod Gilbert Jonnie Irwin Randy Jackson Kate Keltie Duke of Kent Jean Marsh CJ Sansom Andy Taylor James Whale

Condolences, Lady G, and I do understand how a sad loss can bring happiness and pleasure in its wake. I have experienced something similar. Good luck in the days to come, you have already lost your Dad in many ways but it's still hard when all's done.