DevonDeathTrip

On Radio 4 news this evening (read by a very healthy sounding Rory Morrison btw) a doctor was saying there was virtually no hope that Biggs would recover from his present bout of ill health and was talking of a life expectancy in days rather weeks or months. I'm still not convinced he won't be around for Christmas dinner.

Anubis, ref Mihir Bose, it does seem like he's resigned due to some mundane professional disagreement. I was thinking/hoping more along the lines of terminal cancer or outraging public decency - in which case he might have topped himself - but sadly not. Moving on, how about Wall St billionaire financier and philanthropist Lionel Pincus? He's currently in the news as his wife, a Jordanian princess, is spending his money at quite a rapid rate. He was diagnosed with cancer in 2006 and is now deemed as physically and mentally incompetent to manage his own affairs. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/05/nyregion/05princess.html

There are conflicting reports about Frank Kelly's health. He's telling the BBC that he is almost cured of his cancer, but the Daily Express are painting a much darker picture. Both articles confirm that the cancer spread to his liver.

Keith Bradshaw, the chief executive of the MCC, is resigning citing a "conflict of interest". He denies that his decision has anything to do with the fact he is suffering from bone cancer. Jailed American cult leader Warren Jeffs is currently being force fed in an Arizona prison to "prevent the possibility of imminent death" Mihir Bose, the BBC's sports editor has quit with immediate effect for "personal reasons". I wonder why he was in such a rush to quit, maybe he's ill? I need to know.

^ Joseph Misika must indeed have been unwell. So much so that he's just died.

Casino billionaire Stanley Ho, 87, one of Asia's richest men, is in hospital. News sources seem unable to agree on his diagnosis.

Ravi Shankar

Mike Seeger, half brother of Pete and an accomplished folkie in his own right, in now in a hospice having discontinued treatment for the lethally unlucky combination of leukemia and multiple myeloma.

He has cancer.

Author Stanley Middleton. who won the Booker Prize in 1974 for "Holiday" has, er, booked his last holiday.

Fiji's President Josefa Iloilo, 88, who has often been mentioned hereabouts, is to retire next month.

No firm evidence of death yet, you cannot claim DDP points. A bit like Steve Fossett last year. Oh, and it's just a bird. Maybe I should put up a posting for the ant I killed in the kitchen? Just a bird? Philistine. I have just been watching Ospreys in Scotland, The ones we watched on the river Cassley had just the one chick. Another nest about seven miles away was deserted when only one parent returned. That said the Ospreys generally are doing quite well and there are plenty about in Scotland, everywhere except Fraserborough. I'm on the move from nest to nest just now (Funchal today) hence sporadic posting. I can't help noticing there seems to have been an influx of dickheads on the forum. Oh well, I guess it's the silly season. Whoever you are, welcome dickheads but don't overstay and don't on any account upset our cherished regulars. I have noticed some rather rude comments directed at the gentle LFN, Lardy, Rotten Ali and the "mostly harmless" Honez to name just five. If just one dickhead could be converted in to a reasonably articulate poster I guess that would be a result. I'm not holding my breath. I'm sure I read somewhere that Funchal would be one of the last cities in the Northern Hemisphere to succumb to radiation poisoning if a full scale nuclear war occurred. Something to do with it's lack of nearby targets and favourable air currents keeping the fallout away. I hope you sleep better for knowing this, Godot.

Clinicians can't cure Cory's cancer. Chemotherapy cancelled, catheterized, comatose. Considering commencing countdown concerning Cory's close coming conclusion. That's my alliteration appetite alleviated for a while.

It had been reported that Henry Allingham outlived both of his children. The Daily Mail have manged to track down his eldest daughter Betty, aged 89, who hadn't spoken to her father for forty years. None of her children or grandchildren knew they were related to him.

Norbert Rondel. Not famous in any sense of the word, but he lived a colourful life which has produced a really good obituary from The Guardian.

Turkmenistan's President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov has had a tumour removed. [ Edit - cancel that. He's actually removed a tumour from someone else, although he isn't a qualified surgeon. That'll teach me to read articles properly before rushing to post. ]

Harry, your signature is hurting my eyes. I can't open the link, but I am curious to know what all this is about. Is this thrower's feat something akin to single handedly bowling out a cricket team for 0?

A lady from Florida called Kelly Hildebrandt is getting married to a man from Texas...also called Kelly Hildebrandt

A lifetime of abstinence didn't do much to prolong the life of Prohibition Party candidate Gene Amondson, who stood for President in 2004 and 2008 . He's just died of a stroke, aged 65.

Does anyone else remember the Jim Rose Circus? I'd forgotten all about Jim Rose, but it seems that he's still getting hurt for a living.

Beastie Boy Adam Yauch is suffering from "a very treatable" cancer of the salivary gland.

Steve Prescott, who was given six months to live in 2006, is going to take part in a triathalon next month.

The problem with Swayze - from a DL point of view - is that his life almost certainly is being prolonged by the experimental treatment he is receiving. There's quite alot in the news at the moment about this newfangled "Cyberknife" thingy, the latest big thing in tumour zapping. Swayze was one of the first people to be, er, cyberknifed and it does seem to have at least slowed down the spread of the disease. Maybe he will see in 2010. Death watchers have cause to be concerned about some of the recent advances in treating cancer. Increasing survival rates and longer life expectancy after diagnosis threaten to bring about the deadpooling equivalent of a credit crunch.

He couldn't face the shame and dropped out on today's first climb. Not so, Harry. Kenny finished the stage in last place today, twelve minutes behind everybody else, after cycling by himself for two hours.

Two entries in this years Tour, Julian Dean and Oscar Freire, were both shot with an air rifle during Friday's mountainous stage, they only sustained light injuries. During today's stage, a spectator was killed by a police motorbike. In the race for the Lanterne Rouge title, if Kenny Robert Van Hummel can make it all the way to Paris, he'll almost certainly last overall. He is putting in a peerless preformance and is now twenty six minutes behing the second to last placed rider.