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March 2004
Hallo! Im Val Dobson and Im the new editor of Transit, taking over from Kim Farnell - an act that will be
difficult to follow.
The new design of the Transit website is all down to me, as is the new design of the PDF edition. So any
complaints about either should be directed to me via email at transit@oakleafcircle.org, or posted to:
Transit, Astrological Association, Unit 168, Lee Valley Technopark, Tottenham Hale, London N17 9LN.
In this issue, we have Gavin Palmers analysis of the Hutton affair and an article from Dr Andrew Black on
time, space and how it relates to astrology; if thats all too heavy for you, relax with Paul Newmans take
on two highly successful British sitcoms. There are also details of upcoming astrology events, plus news
and announcements from groups and organisations - the COA summer School looks highly tempting......!
If you want to relax with some reading, and have access to the internet, I have gathered a list of astrological
texts that can be downloaded freely - there are some real classics of traditional and ancient astrology
amongst them.
Unfortunately, pressure of work has kept back both Nick Campion's Media Watch and Jenni Harte's
World News. They will be in the next issue.
All astrology news and data for publication is welcome - see page 21 for guidelines.
Bitz & Bobs:
From www.astralis.it:
Sunny day for a wedding, by Didier Castlle. A very interesting statistical research on all couples who
got married in France in a certain period (thats a very large number to test) showing a very interesting
astrological connection. Here it is a short summary to give you an idea: The marriages which were
contracted in France between 1976 and 1997 have been examined as a whole, especially according to
the zodiacal longitudes the Sun had at the birth time of the spouses. From this experimentation, it
emerges an indisputable correlation. Marriages between people having the same solar longitude (more
or less 30) are more numerous than one would expect. On the other hand, the analysis according to the
lunar longitudes reveals no statistical link. Very strong interrelationships appear after having distributed
the marriages according to the signs in which Mercury or Venus happened to be at the birth of the
spouses. More at: www.astralis.it/news
In February www.StarIQ.com carried a story about an Australian insurance companys study that ranked
car accident claimants by Sun sign; Geminis were the worst drivers, apparently, and Scorpios and
Capricorns tied for the position of best drivers. Of course, that only counts the drivers who made accident
claims. Scorpios, for instance, might very well try to hide a small accident or even sneakily rearrange the
evidence to point the blame elsewhere, Capricorns might bribe their way out of trouble and Geminis with
a badly-aspected natal Mercury would quite possibly talk their way into trouble! Actually, this study
isnt new news - it was conducted two years ago. But it still makes for quite interesting reading:
www.stariq.com/Main/Articles/P0005117.HTM
Hutton & The BBC - Gavin Palmer
Britains Best Sitcom - Paul Newman
Astronomy & Space News - Val Dobson
Data Dept
Notes From A Yorkshire Astrologer - David Fisher
Free Astrology Texts - Val Dobson
Astrology, Space & Time - Dr Andrew Black
APAI Day
Greek Island Summer School
Societies, News, Courses, etc.
Local Group News
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HUTTON & THE BBC
by Gavin Palmer
At 6.07 a.m. on Thursday 29 May 2003, Radio Fours Today programme broadcast a report by journalist
Andrew Gilligan that was to have groundshaking ramifications for the BBC. His accusations of governmental
meddling in official intelligence documents stung Downing Street so sharply that by 7.30 the same morning a
government spokesman had issued an official denial of Gilligans allegations, and over the ensuing days all
hell broke loose in an unprecedented war of words between the BBC and Britains elected political leaders.
The saga rumbled on for months, only coming to a close with the conclusions of an official inquiry chaired by
Lord Hutton, which were published exactly two thirds of a solar cycle after the initial report [tSun trine nSun
1.16, 28 Jan]. This Hutton Report found the BBC to be entirely at fault and the government to have acted
impeccably, and led to the Chairman of the BBC resigning immediately. One day later, on the 29th, its
supreme head, Director-General Greg Dyke also fell on his sword, leaving the corporation both stunned and
leaderless.
Astrologically speaking, this latter resignation occurred on a very interesting day, seeing as it did a Half-Moon
[6.03 a.m.] six hours before Venus opposed Jupiter exactly [noon]. Six hours later, Mercury trined Jupiter
exactly [18.09], while the Moon had gone on to square Neptune [14.13] and would conjunct its Node that
evening. Such a confluence of exact aspects and newsworthy events provides a good opportunity to look at
the astrology and see what, if any, correspondences exist.
Straight off, we see Jupiter is the centre of focus for the chart for the 29 Jan 2004. Through its symbolism for
the law, and its position in fussy, pedantic Virgo, we get a clear picture of former judge Huttons rigid adherence
to the very narrow brief set out for his inquiry. He allowed himself absolutely no margin for commenting upon
matters which were undoubtedly related, but which were not strictly within his remit. Jupiters placement in
Virgo is therefore reinforced by its being in opposition to relaxed Venus, with the two planets finding an outlet
through their respective soft aspects to Mercury, which embodies the publication of the report the previous
day. Venus in Pisces itself paints a nice picture of how Hutton viewed the BBCs conduct in this matter - so
concerned with their own editorial independence and freedom of (tabloidesque) speech that they failed to
verify their facts, an accusation levelled both at Gilligans report and at the BBCs swift defence of him.
So much for initial observations; what can be gleaned from applicable natal charts? Taking the 1801 UK chart
to represent the government, we see that its department of spin - natal Mercury[17Sag] - was being directly
challenged by the Venus-Jupiter opposition through an exact square [1752], but the outcome was suggested
by Mercury [1730] being semisextile the same natal planet from authoritarian Capricorn (ruled by Saturn) -
the Hutton Report exonerated the authorities to a degree unanticipated by anyone. We also have the transiting
Moon trining the UKs natal Sun [1011 Cap] from stable Taurus. This is a minor, monthly transit but its
interaction with the rest of the days astrology, bringing as it does the third Earth sign into contact with the UK
chart through the solar symbol of leadership, adds to the unlikelihood of any governmental upheaval at this
time.
Looking at the BBCs natal chart, its clear that transiting Mercury[1730 Cap] is perfectly square its own
natal point [17Lib], a fitting piece of astrological symbolism given the nature of the events in question (i.e.
the publication of a report impacting upon a major communications company). What strikes at the very heart
of the BBC however must be the Venus-Jupiter opposition [1752] perfectly bisecting the natal Mercury-
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Neptune [1752 Leo] sextile and feeding through transiting Mercury inconjunct natal Neptune. This latter hints
at the BBCs confusion and bewilderment at Huttons verdict, and the self-sacrifice of Greg Dyke on this day
in particular.
Thirdly, transits to a chart drawn up for the broadcast of Gilligans original report show that Mercury trined its
position [1403 Tau] on Monday 26 January, just as the first leaks from the report were coming out. It went on
to trine natal Venus and Moon on the day of the reports publication (28th), in tandem with tSun trine nSun and
tMars sex nAscendant. The sole exact transit for the 29th was Venus squaring natal Pluto at 8.46 a.m. This
preponderance of transit hits to the initial broadcast coming on the actual day of publication of the Hutton
Report might be expected, but its fallout reached its peak the following day as the current astrology interlocked
strongly with the charts of the BBC and UK.
Investigation of the personal charts of Gilligan, Dyke and even Hutton would no doubt throw up even more
interesting transits, but this brief overview illuminates what can be gleaned from a purely mundane perspective.
Notes:
1) UK Chart: midnight, 1 Jan., 1801, Westminster (from Mundane Astrology by Baigent/Campion/Harvey,
p.435)
2) BBC founded as a Limited Company on 18 Oct, 1922 (using noon).
3) Radio 4 report broadcast 6.07 a.m., 29 May 2003, London
All charts & transits computed using Astrolog v.5.41F
BRITAINS BEST SITCOM
By Paul Newman
Comedy has been an essential component of television from the very first. The privileged few that watched the
onset of the BBCs regular high-definition television service on November 2nd 1936, would have enjoyed a
song by Adele Dixon and a comedy dance routine by the black comedians Buck and Bubbles. Jovial Jupiter
in Sagittarius was on the BBCs midheaven at this inaugural point, (approximately 3 - 3.30pm).
Over sixty years later, amongst a fashionable rash of polls that enlivened the end of the twentieth century,
the BBC asked British viewers to choose their most memorable moments from fifty years of national television
broadcasting. These were specific moments rather than entire shows or series in general, and in an attempt
to stop things getting completely out of hand a shortlist of only ten in each category was given for our choice.
The Comedy section offered to voters in 1999 included (in no specific order):
FAWLTY TOWERS. (Dont mention the War), 24 October 1975.
THE MORECAMBE & WISE XMAS SHOW 1977. (Dance routine with news presenter Angela Rippon), 25
December 1977.
DADS ARMY. (Dont tell him, Pike), 31 October 1973.
BLACKADDER GOES FORTH. (End of last episode: going over the top in the trenches), 2 November 1989.
ONLY FOOLS AND HORSES. (Del Boy falls through the bar), 8 January 1989.*
MONTY PYTHONS FLYING CIRCUS. (The Parrot sketch), 7 December 1969.
HANCOCK - THE BLOOD DONOR. (A pint? Thats very nearly an armful!), 23 June 1961.
NOT ONLY...BUT ALSO. (Peter Cook & Dudley Moore: sex fantasies of Greta Garbo), 23 January 1965.
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PARKINSON. (Emu attack), 27 November 1976.
ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS. (Edina falls into flowerbed - 1st episode), 12 November 1992.
It is interesting to note that talk show host Michael Parkinson and the attack on him by an Emu puppet was
included for us in the Comedy section. But the overall winner of the BBC Poll was Del Boy falling through a
bar.
Currently the BBC is at it again but this time inviting us to vote for the nations best ever television sitcom
overall, devoting a Saturday night viewing slot to a different contender each week. Many of the same names
as above are in this new Top Ten but now joined with other favourites. The full list of Britains Best Sitcom
(together with birth data of the individual shows) is as follows:
BLACKADDER. June 15, 1983. 9.25pm. London.
DADS ARMY. July 31, 1968. 8.20pm. London.
FAWLTY TOWERS. September 19, 1975. 9pm. London.
ONE FOOT IN THE GRAVE. January 4, 1990. 9.30pm. London.
ONLY FOOLS AND HORSES. September 8, 1981. 8.30pm. London
OPEN ALL HOURS. March 25, 1973. 8.15pm. London..
PORRIDGE. April 1, 1973. 8.15pm. London.
THE GOOD LIFE. April 4, 1975. 8.30pm. London.
THE VICAR OF DIBLEY. November 10, 1994. 8.30pm. London.
YES MINISTER. February 25, 1980. 9pm. London.
A couple of these sitcoms from different ends of the spectrum are astrologically analysed below, not in an
attempt to forecast the winner of this current competition but purely to observe how the content and character
of a show is closely mirrored in its time and date of birth.
BLACKADDER
Wednesday 15 June 1983. 9.25pm. London.
Before Mr Bean, Edmund Blackadder was the best-known alter ego of comic actor Rowan Atkinson (born 6
January 1955). BLACKADDER, which could be described as a set of jokey past-life tales featuring a professional
cheat, (Rising Neptune conjunct South Lunar Node in Sagittarius), ran in four separate television series - and
two one-off specials - in the 1980s.
The whole damned dynasty
The BLACKADDER programme was unusual in that each series had the same character but born each time
into a different pocket of history. The first incarnation, THE BLACK ADDER, was set in the dark ages of the
15th century. BLACKADDER 2 took place in Elizabethan times, BLACKADDER THE THIRD in Regency
period, and BLACKADDER GOES FORTH in the trenches of the First World War. The Blackadder character
also reincarnated as a cavalier in a fifteen-minute 1988 broadcast for the fund-raising charity Comic Relief,
and as Scrooge (or Ebeneezer Blackadder) in a 45-minute Christmas Special also in 1988. After this the
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novelty seemed to have worn off - at least for Rowan Atkinson - and apart from endless repeats BLACKADDER
has remained a pure product of the 1980s with its fascination for wealth and social climbing.
By general agreement BLACKADDER (the show) got better and better with each series and this may
reflect the bounty of having Jupiter strong in its own sign and ruling the birth chart. The series finished when
it was at its most popular and was never seen to grow old and stale. In retrospect the most shaky episodes
were in the first series which the BBC had funded generously but had no plans to extend until the programme
won an award and by a small margin was allowed a second run. After this the show became more confident,
discarding expensive outdoor shots and putting Jupiter more where its mouth was. The Gemini wit was
enhanced as comedian Ben Elton joined the writing team, and the verbal jokes flew thicker and faster while
the character of Blackadder grew more smug and self-assured.
Chart-ruling Jupiter in Sagittarius also outweighed the darker elements of the Saturn-Pluto conjunction
near the Scorpio midheaven. These macabre shades, most noticeable in the first series, were charitably
described as black comedy or, as is now more fashionable, grotesque, but the unfunny gory scenes had
condemned the show to the outposts of fringe humour and in the subsequent series the horror element
subsided as the wit grew sharper. Jupiters Sagittarian horseplay expanded and the atmosphere brightened.
Blackadders Saturn-Pluto determination to manipulate cash and power was still there but the dark serpent
of the Scorpionic midheaven was left to reside only within the character (and name) of the main protagonist.
A cunning plan, Baldric
With the Sun and North Node on the descendant - and the Sun in Gemini too - there had to be a double-act
here somewhere. Blackadders constant other-half throughout the entire series was his grubby manservant
Baldric.
Service would play a big part in the plots with a 6th House crammed with planetary energy. Baldric served
Blackadder; Blackadder served his superiors, and so on up the rickety social ladder. With a Gemini Sun-
Node on the descendant, smart swindling Blackadder and grimy gullible Baldric were obviously karmic
partners, Gemini twins through thick and thin. Why else would they have tolerated each other and kept
reincarnating together? Baldric proved the perfect dull-brained foil to Blackadders scheming connivance yet
while Baldric was the butt of endless verbal and physical abuse he was thick-skinned enough to suffer less
than his master in the long run. Other characters, usually higher-born up the social scale, also fitted into
comic duos, and the banter between Blackadder and these mentally deficient chinless wonders was more
like a vaudeville routine between cross-talk comedians. (Sun conjunct Mars in Gemini on descendant). The
words were sharp (Mercury in Gemini), the metaphors high-blown and preposterous (Mercury opposite Jupiter),
but funny (three planets and ascendant Sagittarius).
A theatrical flavour to BLACKADDER is noticeable through its Leo Moon. There were Shakespearean
tones in the first and second series, and the credits to BLACKADDER 3 were presented as an Entertainment,
listed as characters in a play. Leo also reflects the obsession with lordly authority and the misuse of royal or
hierarchical power that provided jokes in every episode. Blackadder is a status-seeking individual, often a
soldier (Sun conjunct Mars), amongst aristocratic Leo figures to whom he must both fawn and outwit. Rowan
Atkinsons own Capricorn Sun delighted in portraying the funny side of a 1980s yuppie in a quest for power
and recognition throughout time and space.
There is a lot of Fire and Air in the BLACKADDER chart, but no Earth or Water. The characters were full
of hot air, mad schemes and cunning plans but little in the way of common sense, pity or remorse. Yet the
whole series was working its way towards the expression of true feeling and sympathy at its end. In the
trenches of the First World War it would finally display the most prominent feature of the entire birth chart -
the exact Rising Neptune.
The Poppy Field
At first, being Neptune, it was easy to miss. But the dreamy planet of inspiration and deception was all-
important, trining the Moon, sextiling Pluto and Saturn, opposing the Sun, and rising almost precisely on the
ascendant. Neptune was therefore the signature of the show and with a chart that was highly mutable this
only facilitated its chameleon changes in period and costume from one series to the next all the easier.
Rowan Atkinson had a vehicle here to exploit any period of history that he wished, and a continuing licence
to poke fun at actual historical figures and attitudes as if he were dreaming his way through them. In fact it
was the rising Neptune that led the whole BLACKADDER series to climax and finish with a sacrificial and
compassionate message.
The last episode of BLACKADDER GOES FORTH, set in the trenches of the 1914-18 War, ended in an
uncharacteristically sober vein with our heroes facing certain death as they advanced into the futile glory of
no-mans land. Even the wily Captain Blackadder could not worm his way out of this sad predicament. After
so many laughs along the way the poignancy of this message was long remembered as the end credits
faded into a field of Neptunian poppies. In real time it was the end of the 1980s and the right-wing reign of
Margaret Thatcher. The divide between the privileged members of society and the remaining peasants was
another message that the alternative comedians of the 1980s were always ready to exploit, and the designer-
label decade with its yearning to revert to old traditional values was finishing with many a moral to ponder.
We could also muse that the strength of Neptune led the BLACKADDER series to finish in the First
World War as this conflict has been associated by some as being the last war of the Age of Pisces.
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Certainly The Great War, as it was once called, has Neptunian features in abundance. It was an imprecise
and muddled affair marked with mud and gas and angelic visions, as thousands were sent into sacrificial
slaughter.
Conventional television wisdom says that situational comedy set in retrospective historical eras is fine for
a few quick sketches but difficult to maintain for long. The period jokes get exhausted quickly and the narrow
parameters prevent room for character development. BLACKADDER avoided these problems by jumping
across the centuries, landing in different circumstances each time and milking each for as many laughs as
it could before moving on.
Mr Blackadder was usually killed off at the end of each run - in an off-screen Neptunian way - before
floating in again in a new guise further down the river of time. Only in the very last episode of all did practically
the entire cast dissolve along with him. (Their images literally dissolving on screen).
It was Neptunian to the end.
THE GOOD LIFE
Friday 4 April 1975. 8.30pm London.
Tom and Barbara Good were the married couple (Libra ascendant) whose suburban lifestyle was progressively
different to the rest (Uranus rising and ruling the Aquarian 4th house cusp). They had given up their 9-to-5
jobs for a life of self-sufficiency and then converted their house and garden to that same purpose. And while
just this basic scenario had good scope for many a comic moment it was lifted further by the inclusion of
another couple: the Goods very upper middle-class next-door neighbours Margo and Jerry, who acted as a
supportive counterbalance to the Goods. Doubly Libra!
In the BBCs Top Ten Sitcoms currently being presented for our votes, THE GOOD LIFE is generally seen
as the gentlest, the nicest, the one that made you feel good. Its all very Libra - but also very real. There was
a believability in the characters of these two couples that the four actors (Richard Briers, Felicity Kendall,
Penelope Keith and Paul Eddington) superbly managed to convey. And this was enhanced by their individual
astrological links to the Venus-ruled GOOD LIFE birth chart. Lets look at these one by one.
Richard Briers (14 January 1934. 12.30am. Merton, Surrey), playing Tom Good, was born with both Sun
and Moon in Capricorn allowing him to empathize naturally with THE GOOD LIFEs angular Capricorn Moon.
His portrayal of Tom Good, seen with the benefit of a few decades hindsight, held an old-fashioned heartiness
and repartee reminiscent of Kenneth More in the 1950s. Tom Good reflected the Saturnian willingness to get
back to basics and live without lifes fripperies while slowly building to the Good Life of total self-sufficiency,
(Moon conjunct 4th house cusp). A man of principles, Good was prepared to toil around the clock and not
accept handouts from friends when the going got tough.
Tom Goods wife, Barbara, played by Sun Libran Felicity Kendall (25 September 1946. Birmingham),
provided the lighter Libran face. As the ascendant of THE GOOD LIFE chart, Libra allowed this all to be
viewed as light comedy, and Barbara was the Libran lens - prepared to bend for the sake of harmony,
prepared to compromise with her more outwardly dominant spouse. Barbara Good was the sweet and patient
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other-half, the partner who had gone along with her others determined ideas, and to some extent the 12-year
age difference between the two actors who played Tom and Barbara made this ring truer. When the first
series began in April 1975 Felicity Kendall was 28 and Richard Briers 41, spot-on incidentally for the character
of Tom Good who turns 40 in the first episode and announces his great idea of giving up a well-paid job and
going self-sufficient. But we could believe astrologically that for both Tom and Barbara two of lifes great
turning points had just hit them.
A Uranus Opposition fervour easily explains Tom Goods revolutionary bid for freedom, quitting the 9 to 5
grind and living outside the establishment, yet his wife was no doubt feeling the more difficult Saturn-Return
obligation to knuckle down and help him. While their self-imposed life-style was hard on them both we
somehow felt that Barbara had sacrificed most, perhaps because she represented a Libra going through a
Saturn Return: no new clothes, no little treats, few feminine luxuries etc. But age differences and Sun signs
apart, the Goods were a happy, devoted and evenly matched couple - as shown by chart-ruling Venus in
Taurus in the 7th house.
Evenly-matched was not the first phrase that sprung to mind to describe their next-door neighbours the
Leadbetters however; a couple who represented a dominant wife and an anything-for-a-quiet-life husband.
Margo Leadbetter as played by the largely unknown actress Penelope Keith (2 April 1940. Sutton, Surrey),
would arguably emerge as the star of the show. THE GOOD LIFE put her name on the map and typecast her
forever as the lovable snob Margo. Penelope Keiths Aries Sun was only two degrees from the Sun of the
show and there were more planets in Aries than in any other sign on THE GOOD LIFE chart. It was a show
about Libran couples and Libran give-and-take but it had fiery, straightforward Arian forces within those
couples.
This was especially so in the character of Margo, who was in many ways the odd one out of the four.
While her husband Jerry had a more natural understanding and admiration for what the Goods were trying to
do with their life, Margos need to keep up an acceptable social front belied a more vulnerable person
beneath. The psychology of Margo would be explored more as the series progressed, giving the writers a rich
vein to utilise when many of the self-sufficiency situations had already been mined. Here was a woman who
formidably wore the trousers, and even became a kind of peoples hero as she tackled petty bureaucracy and
awkward tradesmen. Yet she was a sensitive and isolated individual who would touchingly admit to the
others, after one too many homemade wines, that she could never understand jokes nor why people thought
things were funny. She laughed as polite society required but never got the humour - an admission much to
the tipsy hilarity of the other three. Apart from this trait however, we could see a lot of Aries in Margos
character and should not be surprised that she shone in this Aries/Libra show.
Paul Eddington (18 June 1927. London), played Margos husband Jerry. The genial actor later gained
greater starring success in the comedies YES MINISTER and YES PRIME MINISTER (also contenders for
the Best Sitcom Award) before his untimely death in the 1980s. But in terms of the astrology of THE GOOD
LIFE his Sun sign (Gemini) was less dominant than those of the other three whose Suns reflected the charts
Sun, Moon and ascendant (Aries, Capricorn, Libra). In a sense Jerry was the least knowable of the four main
protagonists. As the hen-pecked nice-guy, his character may have drawn the shortest straw, but as the foil
to Margo he was perfectly cast. Again there was a 12-year age difference between these two actors, which
worked in an opposite way to that perceived in the relationship of the Goods. At the start of series Paul
Eddington was 47, the eldest in the cast, while Penelope Keith had just turned 35. We may have interpreted
their characters as the older man indulging his younger wife, and perhaps suspected that although Margo
appeared to have the upper hand she might have married an older man for reasons of security and was more
dependent on him than she seemed.
The Moon is at the root of this chart, conjunct the lower heaven, and it is without doubt a domestic
comedy, a story about homes. The Sun is in the 6th house, the place of habitual work and service, a fitting
signature (with the rising Uranus) for an alternative life-style of self-sufficiency. Mars in Aquarius in the 4th
also backs up the same theme.
More TV comedy data gathered by Paul Newman:
ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS. November 12, 1992. 9pm. London.
ACORN ANTIQUES. (See VICTORIA WOOD - AS SEEN ON TV)
THE ADDAMS FAMILY. September 18, 1964. 8.30pm. New York.
THE ADVENTURES OF OZZIE AND HARRIET. October 3, 1952. 8pm. New York.
AGONY. March 11, 1979. 9.15pm. London.
ALAS SMITH AND JONES. December 27, 1982. 8.05pm. London. (5-minute special.
Full Series: January 31, 1984. 9.30pm. London).
ALFRED MARKS TIME. February 16, 1956. 8pm. London.
ALICE. August 31, 1976. 9.30pm. New York.
ALL IN THE FAMILY. January 12, 1971. 9.30pm. New York.
ALLO ALLO! December 30, 1982. 8.25pm. London. (Pilot)
ALLY McBEAL. September 8, 1997. 9pm. New York.
THE ARMY GAME. June 19, 1957. 8.30pm. London.
THE ARTHUR HAYNES SHOW. January 2, 1957. 9.30pm. London.
AS TIME GOES BY. January 12, 1992. 8.35pm. London.
AUF WIEDERSEIN PET. September 11, 1983. 9pm. London.
BARRY HUMPHRIES SCANDALS. July 12, 1969. 9pm. London.
BEN ELTON - THE MAN FROM AUNTIE. February 15, 1990. 9.30pm. London.
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THE BENNY HILL SHOW. January 15, 1955. 8.45pm. London.
THE BEVERLY HILLBILLIES. September 26, 1962. 9pm. New York.
BEWITCHED. September 17, 1964. 9pm. New York.
BIRDS OF A FEATHER. October 16, 1989. 8.30pm. London.
BLACKADDER. June 15, 1983. 9.25pm. London.
BLESS THIS HOUSE. February 2, 1971. 7pm. London.
BOOTSIE AND SNUDGE. September 23, 1960. 8.55pm. London.
BOTTOM. September 17, 1991. 9pm. London.
THE BRADY BUNCH. September 26, 1969. 8pm. New York.
BREAD. May 1, 1986. 9.30pm. London.
BRIAN CONLEY - THIS WAY UP. May 20, 1989. 7.30pm. London.
THE BRITTAS EMPIRE. January 3, 1991. 8.30pm. London.
BRUSH STROKES. September 1, 1986. 8.30pm. London.
BUTTERFLIES. November 10, 1978. 9pm. London.
CANDID CAMERA. August 10, 1948. 8pm. New York.
CANNON AND BALL. July 28, 1979. 8pm. London.
CAR 54, WHERE ARE YOU? September 17, 1961. 8.30pm. New York.
CHEF! January 28, 1993. 9.30pm. London.
CITIZEN SMITH. April 12, 1977. 7.40pm. London. (Pilot)
THE COMEDIANS. June 12, 1971. 7pm. London.
COMIC RELIEF. April 25, 1986. 10.15pm. London.
THE COMIC STRIP PRESENTS...(Five Go Mad in Dorset). November 2, 1982.
10.15pm. London.
COOL IT. (Phil Cool). August 30, 1985. 10pm. London.
THE COSBY SHOW. September 20, 1984. 8pm. New York.
CURRY AND CHIPS. November 21, 1969. 8.30pm. London.
DADS ARMY. July 31, 1968. 8.20pm. London.
THE DAVE KING SHOW. October 15, 1955. 8.30pm. London.
DESMONDS. January 5, 1989. 8.30pm.London.
THE DES OCONNOR SHOW. May 29, 1963. 9.15pm. London.
THE DETECTIVES (Jasper Carrott/Robert Powell). January 27, 1993. 8pm. London.
THE DICK EMERY SHOW. July 13, 1963. 8.05pm. London.
THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW. October 3, 1961. 8pm. New York.
THE DICKIE HENDERSON SHOW. April 6, 1957. 8.30pm. London.
DIFFRENT STROKES. November 3, 1978. 8pm. New York.
DINOSAURS. April 26, 1991. 8.30pm. New York.
DO NOT ADJUST YOUR SET. December 26, 1967. 5.25pm. London.
DOCTOR IN THE HOUSE. July 12, 1969. 7.35pm. London.
DROP THE DEAD DONKEY. August 9, 1990. 10.30pm. London.
DUTY FREE. February 13, 1984. 8pm. London.
EVER DECREASING CIRCLES. January 29, 1984. 8.35pm. London.
THE FALL AND RISE OF REGINALD PERRIN. September 8, 1976. 9.25pm. London.
FAST AND LOOSE. (Bob Monkhouse). May 12, 1954. 9.25pm. London.
THE FAST SHOW. September 27, 1994. 10pm. London.
FATHER DEAR FATHER. November 5, 1968. 8.30pm. London.
FATHER KNOWS BEST. October 3, 1954. 10pm. New York.
FATHER TED. April 21, 1995. 9pm. London.
FAWLTY TOWERS. September 19, 1975. 9pm. London.
A FINE ROMANCE. November 1, 1981. 10pm. London.
THE FLINTSTONES (Cartoon). September 30, 1960. 8.30pm. New York.
FOR THE LOVE OF ADA. April 20, 1970. 9.30pm. London.
THE FOSTERS. April 9, 1976. 7.30pm. London.
FRASIER. September 16, 1993. 9.30pm. New York.
FRENCH AND SAUNDERS. March 9, 1987. 9pm. London.
FRESH FIELDS. March 7, 1984. 8.30pm. London.
FRESH PRINCE OF BEL AIR. September 10, 1990. 8pm. New York.
FRIENDS. September 22, 1994. 8.30pm. New York.
THE GAFFER. January 9, 1981. 8.30pm. London.
GAME ON. February 27, 1995. 9.30pm. London.
GEORGE AND MILDRED. September 6, 1976. 8pm. London.
THE GEORGE BURNS AND GRACIE ALLEN SHOW. October 12, 1950. 8pm. New York.
GET SMART. September 18, 1965. 8.30pm. New York.
GIRLS ON TOP. October 23, 1985. 8.30pm. London.
THE GLAM METAL DETECTIVES. February 23, 1995. 9pm. London.
GOING STRAIGHT. February 24, 1978. 8.30pm. London.
THE GOLDEN GIRLS. September 14, 1985. 9pm. New York.
A GOOD IDEA - SON! (Max Bygraves). May 9, 1953. 9.30pm. London.
THE GOOD LIFE. April 4, 1975. 8.30pm. London.
THE GOODIES. November 8, 1970. 10pm. London.
GOODNIGHT SWEETHEART. November 18, 1993. 8.30pm. London.
GOONREEL. (First Goon Show on TV). July 2, 1952. 8.45pm. London.
THE TELEGOONS. (Puppets). October 5, 1963. 5.40pm. London.
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GREEN ACRES. September 15, 1965. 9pm. New York.
HALE AND PACE. December 20, 1986. 9pm. London.
HANCOCKS HALF-HOUR. July 6, 1956. 9.30pm. London.
HAPPY DAYS. January 15, 1974. 8pm. New York.
HAPPY EVER AFTER. May 7, 1974. 8.30pm. London. (Later renamed TERRY & JUNE
from October 24, 1979. 8.30pm. London).
HARRY ENFIELDS TELEVISION PROGRAMME. November 8, 1990. 9pm. London.
HARRY HILL. May 30, 1997. 10.30pm. London.
HERES HARRY (Harry Worth). October 11, 1960. 7.30pm. London.
HI de HI. January 1, 1980. 7.30pm. London. (Pilot).
HINGE AND BRACKET. March 31, 1978. 9.30pm. London. (First TV programme in
Scotland: September 23, 1977. 12.30pm).
HOGANS HEROES. September 17, 1965. 8.30pm. New York.
HOME IMPROVEMENT. September 17, 1991. 8.30pm. New York.
THE HONEYMOONERS. October 1, 1955. 8.30pm. New York.
HOPE AND KEEN. December 22, 1965. 9.10pm. London.
HOW DO YOU VIEW? (Terry Thomas). October 26, 1949. 8.30pm. London.
THE HOWERD CROWD. (Frankie Howerd). January 12, 1952. 8.45pm. London.
HUDD. (Roy Hudd). July 15, 1965. 8.50pm.
I DREAM OF JEANNIE. September 18, 1965. 8pm. New York.
I LOVE LUCY. October 15, 1951. 9pm. New York.
IN LOVING MEMORY. November 4, 1969. 8.30pm. London. (Pilot)
IS IT LEGAL? September 12, 1995. 8.30pm. London.
IT AINT HALF HOT MUM. January 3, 1974. 8pm. London.
ITLL BE ALL RIGHT ON THE NIGHT. September 18, 1977. 7.45pm. London.
ITS A SQUARE WORLD (Michael Bentine). September 16, 1960. 9pm. London.
ITS MAGIC (Tommy Cooper). March 12, 1952. 9pm. London.
THE JACK DEE SHOW. February 26, 1992. 10.30pm. London.
JEEVES AND WOOSTER.(Steven Fry & Hugh Laurie). April 22, 1990. 8.45pm. London.
THE JEFFERSONS. January 18, 1975. 8.30pm. New York.
THE JIM DAVIDSON SHOW. January 11, 1979. 7.30pm. London.
JUST GOOD FRIENDS. September 22, 1983. 9.25pm. London.
KATE AND ALLIE. March 19, 1984. 9.30pm. New York.
KEEPING UP APPEARANCES. October 29, 1990. 8.30pm. London.
THE KEN DODD SHOW. July 25, 1959. 8.20pm. London.
KENAN AND KEL. October 12, 1996. New York. (time not known).
THE KENNY EVERETT VIDEO SHOW. July 3, 1978. 6.45pm. London.
KING OF THE HILL (cartoon). January 12, 1996. 8.30pm. New York.
KNOWING ME, KNOWING YOU...WITH ALAN PARTRIDGE. September 16, 1994. 10pm.
London.
THE LARKINS. September 19, 1958. 10.15pm. London.
LAST OF THE SUMMER WINE. January 4, 1973. 8pm. London. (Pilot)
LAVERNE & SHIRLEY. January 27, 1976. 8.30pm.
LEAVE IT TO BEAVER. October 4, 1957. 7.30pm. New York.
THE LIFE OF RILEY. October 4, 1949. 9.30pm. New York.
LIFE WITH THE LYONS. June 29, 1955. 8.15pm. London.
THE LIKELY LADS. December 16, 1964. 9.55pm. London.
THE LITTLE & LARGE TELLYSHOW. December 20, 1976. 8.30pm. London.
THE LIVER BIRDS. April 14, 1969. 7.30pm. London. (Pilot)
THE LOVE BOAT. September 24, 1977. 10pm. New York.
LOVE THY NEIGHBOUR. April 13, 1972. 9pm. London.
THE LUCY SHOW. October 1, 1962. 8.30pm. New York.
MAMA. July 1, 1949. 8pm. New York.
MAN ABOUT THE HOUSE. August 15, 1973. 8.30pm. London.
MARRIED...WITH CHILDREN. April 5, 1987. 8pm. New York.
THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW. September 19, 1970. 9.30pm. New York.
THE MARY WHITEHOUSE EXPERIENCE. October 3, 1990. 9pm. London. (Pilot)
M.A.S.H. September 17, 1972. 8pm. New York.
MAY TO DECEMBER. April 2, 1989. 8.35pm. London.
MEET THE WIFE. December 28, 1963. 9.35pm. London. (Pilot)
MEN BEHAVING BADLY. February 18, 1992. 8.30pm. London.
MIND YOUR LANGUAGE. December 30, 1977. 7pm. London.
MONTY PYTHONS FLYING CIRCUS. October 5, 1969. 10.55pm. London.
THE MORECAMBE AND WISE SHOW. (ITV). October 12, 1961. 8pm. London.
THE MORECAMBE AND WISE SHOW. (BBC). September 2, 1968. 8.50pm. London.
MR BEAN. January 1, 1990. 8pm. London.
THE MUNSTERS. September 24, 1964. 7.30pm. New York.
MY THREE SONS. September 29, 1960. 9pm. New York.
NEAREST AND DEAREST. August 15, 1968. 8pm. London.
NEVER MIND THE QUALITY-FEEL THE WIDTH. February 18, 1967. 10.30pm. London. (Pilot)
THE NEW STATESMAN. September 13, 1987. 10pm. London.
NO - HONESTLY. October 4, 1974. 8.30pm. London.
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NOT IN FRONT OF THE CHILDREN. May 26, 1967. 7.30pm. London. (Pilot)
NOT ONLY...BUT ALSO. (Peter Cook & Dudley Moore). January 9, 1965. 9.25pm.
London.
NOT THE NINE OCLOCK NEWS. October 16, 1979. 9pm. London.
NOW - SOMETHING ELSE (Rory Bremner). March 3, 1986. 9pm. London.
THE ODD COUPLE. September 24, 1970. 9.30pm. New York.
THE OFFICE. July 9, 2001. 9.30pm. London.
OH NO - ITS SELWYN FROGGITT. September 30, 1974. 8pm. London. (Pilot)
ON THE BUSES. February 28, 1969. 7.30pm. London.
ONE FOOT IN THE GRAVE. January 4, 1990. 9.30pm. London.
ONLY FOOLS AND HORSES. September 8, 1981. 8.30pm. London.
ONLY WHEN I LAUGH. October 29, 1979. 8pm. London.
OPEN ALL HOURS. March 25, 1973. 8.15pm. London. (Pilot)
OUTSIDE EDGE. March 24, 1994. 8.30pm. London.
PARDON THE EXPRESSION. June 2, 1965. 7pm. London.
THE PAUL HOGAN SHOW. May 11, 1973. Australia. (time not known)
PAUL MERTON - THE SERIES. September 25, 1991. 10.30pm. London.
THE PHIL SILVERS SHOW (Sergeant Bilko). September 20, 1955. 8.30pm. New York.
PHOENIX NIGHTS. January 14, 2001. 9.30pm. London.
PLEASE SIR! November 8, 1968. 8.30pm. London.
PORRIDGE. April 1, 1973. 8.15pm. London. (Pilot)
Q (Spike Milligan). March 31, 1969. 8.50pm. London.
RAB C. NESBITT. December 31, 1989. 9.30pm. London.
THE RAG TRADE. October 6, 1961. 8.45pm. London.
RED DWARF. February 15, 1988. 9pm. London.
RHODA. September 9, 1974. 9.30pm. New York.
RIPPING YARNS. January 7, 1976. 9pm. London.
RISING DAMP. September 2, 1974. 8pm. London. (Pilot)
ROMANY JONES. February 15, 1972. 10.30pm. London. (Pilot)
ROSEANNE. October 18, 1988. 8.30pm. New York.
ROWAN & MARTINS LAUGH-IN. January 22, 1968. 8pm. New York. (Pilot:
September 9, 1967).
RUNNING WILD. (Morecambe & Wise). April 21, 1954. 9.30pm. London.
RUSS ABBOTS MADHOUSE. April 12, 1980. 6pm. London.
RUTLAND WEEKEND TELEVISION. May 12, 1975. 9pm. London.
SABRINA THE TEENAGE WITCH. April 7, 1996. 7pm. New York.
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE. October 11, 1975. 11.30pm. New York.
SECOND THOUGHTS. May 3, 1991. 8pm. London.
THE SECRET POLICEMANS BALL. December 22, 1979. 11.15pm. London.
SEZ LES. (Les Dawson). April 30, 1969. 10.30pm. London.
SEINFELD. May 31, 1990. 9.30pm. New York. (Pilot: July 5, 1989).
SHELLEY. July 12, 1979. 9.30pm. London.
THE SIMPSONS. (Cartoon). December 17, 1989. 8.30pm. New York.
THE SMOTHERS BROTHERS COMEDY HOUR. February 5, 1967. 9pm. New York.
SOAP. September 13, 1977. 9.30pm. New York.
SOME MOTHERS DO AVE EM. February 15, 1973. 8pm. London.
THE SONNY AND CHER COMEDY HOUR. August 1, 1971. 8.30pm. New York.
SORRY! March 12, 1981. 8.30pm. London.
SOUTH PARK (Cartoon). August 13, 1997.
SPITTING IMAGE. February 26, 1984. 10pm. London.
STEPTOE AND SON. January 5, 1962. 8.45pm. London. (Pilot)
THE STANLEY BAXTER SHOW. May 18, 1963. 7.45pm. London.
THE STRANGE WORLD OF GURNEY SLADE. October 22, 1960. 8.35pm. London.
SYKES. (Eric Sykes). September 14, 1972. 8pm. London.
TAXI. September 12, 1978. 9.30pm. New York.
THE TED RAY SHOW. May 21, 1955. 9.15pm. London.
TERRY AND JUNE (See HAPPY EVER AFTER)
THE THIN BLUE LINE. November 13, 1995. 8.30pm. London.
3RD ROCK FROM THE SUN. January 9, 1996. 8.30pm. New York.
THREE OF A KIND (Lenny Henry/Tracey Ullman/David Copperfield). July
1,1981.8.30pm.London.
TILL DEATH US DO PART. July 22, 1965. 8.50pm. London. (Pilot).
TONIGHT WITH DAVE ALLEN. July 9, 1967. 11.05pm. London.
TOPPER. 0ctober 9, 1953. 8.30pm. New York.
TO THE MANOR BORN. September 30, 1979. 8.45pm. London.
TURN IT UP! (Jewell & Warriss). September 29, 1951. 8.30pm. London.
TUTTI FRUTTI. March 3, 1987. 9.30pm. London.
2 POINT 4 CHILDREN. September 3, 1991. 8.30pm. London.
THE TWO RONNIES. April 10, 1971. 8.15pm. London.
UP POMPEII. September 17, 1969. 9.10pm. London. (Pilot).
THE VICAR OF DIBLEY. November 10, 1994. 8.30pm. London.
VIC REEVES BIG NIGHT OUT. May 25, 1990. 10.30pm.London.
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VICTORIA WOOD-AS SEEN ON TV. January 11, 1985. 9pm. London.
THE VILLAGE STORE. (Mr Pastry). August 19, 1946. 8.30pm. London.
WHACK-O! October 4, 1956. 8pm. London.
WHO DO YOU DO? January 8, 1972. 6.05pm. London.
WHOOPS APOCALYPSE. March 14, 1982. 10pm. London.
WALLACE & GROMIT (A Grand Day Out - animation). December 24, 1990. 6pm?
London.
WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE LIKELY LADS? January 9, 1973. 8.30pm. London.
WILL & GRACE. September 21, 1998. 9.30pm. New York.
THE WORKER (Charlie Drake). February 27, 1965. 8.25pm. London.
THE WORLD OF BEACHCOMBER. January 22, 1968. 8pm. London.
YES MINISTER. February 25, 1980. 9pm. London.
YES PRIME MINISTER. January 9, 1986. 9pm. London.
YOU BET YOUR LIFE. (Groucho Marx). October 5, 1950. 8pm. New York.
THE YOUNG ONES. November 9, 1982. 9pm. London.
ASTRONOMY & SPACE NEWS by Val Dobson
The worst disaster of Indias space programme occurred on 23rd February 2004, when an explosion ripped
through the Solid Propellant Rocket Booster Plant in Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, burning six
workers to death and seriously injuring several more.
The Indian space programme was born in November 1963, when an unmanned Apache Nike rocket (bought from
the USA) was successfully launched from a launch pad amongst the coconut groves of Thumba, on the outskirts
of Trivandrum, Kerala states capital. The new space centre was hardly Cape Canaveral - the scientists had their
offices in a disused church, the main workshop was the former bishops house and the laboratory was an old
cattle shed.
Indian Space Programme: 21st November 1963; Thumpa, Kerala (829N 7655E) (various sources; time not
known)
Accident: 23rd February 2004; Sriharikota (1337N 8018E); 3.50pm IST (10.20 am GMT) Source: The Hindu,
February 24th 2004.
If 2003 was the year of Mars, then 2004 looks like being the year of Saturn. The Cassini Saturn probe was
launched over six years ago, on October 15th 1997. It caused controversy at the time because its generator is
powered by 72 pounds of radioactive plutonium dioxide - protesters argued that a Chernobyl-style disaster could
take place if anything went wrong with the launch. However, all went well and on the 1st of July Cassini will be
making its long-awaited rendezvous with Saturn. It will settle into a four-year orbital flyby that will take it through
the rings and close to most of the 18 moons of the Lord of the Rings. Additionally, on Christmas Day 2004, Cassini
will drop off a probe that will explore the largest moon, Titan. Titan, just under half the size of Earth and only a little
smaller than Mars, has a relatively dense atmosphere (mainly methane and nitrogen), so scientists are hopeful
that it could support some sort of life, despite a surface temperature so cold that gas is liquified.
There could be at least one comet visible to the naked eye in the skies this Spring. Both Comet NEAT and Comet
LINEAR (discovered by the Near Earth Asteroid Tracking program and the Lincoln Laboratory Near Earth Asteroid
Research respectively, hence the names) will become visible in Southern-hemisphere skies in March-April and
will appear in the Northern hemisphere in early may. Comet NEAT is predicted to become a 1-magnitude object,
meaning that it will be as bright as the brightest star; Comet LINEAR, however, will almost certainly be too close
to the sun and too low on the horizon to be seen clearly.
Talking of near-Earth objects, it has emerged that on January 14th this year only a lucky bit of weather in California
deprived us of the spectacle of life imitating Hollywood art, in the shape of the American President on worldwide
television announcing that the Earth could be hit by an asteroid within 24 hours. On January 13th, a previously
unknown space object turned up in photographs taken by an asteroid-watching station in New Mexico and the
astronomers there calculated that it was on a possible collision course with Earth. A preliminary analysis of the
discovery data for this object yielded a possible impact with the Earth in less than two days time, said David
Morrison, an asteroid and comet impact hazard expert at NASAs Ames Research Centre. However, right then,
there were only the grainy photos to go on; with heavy and persistent clouds covering the American continental
Western coast it was impossible to refine the calculations with a visual check. The object was calculated to be
around 30 metres wide - big enough to kill thousands if it hit a populated area.
As is the standard practice, the information on the find was immediately released to astronomy groups world-wide
via the internet and astronomers everywhere were alerted to look for it. In the early hours of the 14th (US time) an
amateur astronomer in California spotted a break in the clouds, pointed his telescope at the part of the sky where
the object was supposed to be visible - and saw nothing that shouldnt have been there. The early calculations had
been wrong, and the asteroid turned out to have missed Earth by some 12 million kilometres, about 32 times the
distance between the Earth and the Moon. The astronomers breathed a sigh of relief, the President carried on
sleeping and Bruce Willis put his shirt back on.
(Source: The Guardian, 26th February 2004
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DAVID FISHERS DATA DEPARTMENT
June 2004 sees the 70th anniversary of the death of probably the finest composer to come out of Yorkshire.
I refer, of course, to Frederic Delius. The music of Delius is quite unlike that of any other composer and it is
difficult to describe to someone who has never heard it. Mystical, haunting, sad (though never depressing),
yearning, nostalgic (or music for Cancerians, if you like), decadent, exquisitely beautiful with an undercurrent
of fear and tragedy - Delius music is all of these things. It is largely a mixture of Grieg, Wagner and, not
least, Negro blues and in the fifteen years leading up to the First World War he turned out a succession of
astonishingly original orchestral pieces, the like of which had never been heard before and which have not
been heard since. In 1903 he married a second-rate painter called Jelka Rosen who had a fine house and
garden at Grez, not far from Fontaineblue, France; it was here that Delius was to spend the rest of his life.
Just before the First World War, Delius health began to decline and by the mid-1920s he was blind and
paralysed, a condition now agreed to have been caused by syphilis. In 1968, Ken Russells TV film A Song
of Summer chose to concentrate on the last six years of Delius life. Eric Fenby, a young organist from
Scarborough, had heard of the composers plight and wrote him a letter asking if he could come over to
France to help Delius compose again.
The collaboration of Delius and Fenby remains one of the most moving stories in the annals of music. Fenby
would take down the notes as Delius dictated them, but according to Fenbys book Delius As I Knew Him, it
was often an arduous and frustrating experience. It is not surprising that the younger man had a nervous
breakdown after five years of what was almost a monastic existence in France. Nevertheless, the introduction
of Fenby into the Delius household had given the composer a new lease of life, but in 1934 it was evident that
Delius health was failing rapidly and he died on June 10th of that year. Jelka joined him a year later and they
are now buried at Limpsfield in Surrey. Eric Fenby led a long and active life, eventually becoming President
of the Delius Society (of which this writer was a member 1986-96); he died in February 1997.
Fritz Albert Theodor Delius: 29th January 1862; Bradford (53N48 001W45); 09.07 am GMT. Original source
not known.
Eric Fenby: 22nd April 1906; Scarborough (54N17 000W24); 04.00am GMT. Letter from him to David Fisher,
18th June 1986.
Jelka Delius was born in Belgrade in 1868 but I have been unable to locate the precise birth-date.
New Data!!!
King Richard II of England, who reigned 1377-99, was the son of Edward the Black prince; but the latter died
before his father, Edward III, leaving the succession to 10-year-old Richard. In 1381 the young King courageously
faced the rebels during the Peasants Revolt, but the real power in the land belonged to his uncle, John of
Gaunt.
However, even when Richard reached 18, ambitious barons constantly frustrated his attempts to exert authority
and executed or exiled the Kings supporters. In 1397, hostility towards his foreign policy forced Richard to
do the same to his rivals. He made an ill-advised trip to Ireland in 1399 allowing John of Gaunts son, Henry
of Bolingbroke, to claim his throne as Henry IV. Richard returned, but it was too late. He was forced to
abdicate and died in Pontefract Castle some time in the year 1400.
KING RICHARD II: 6th January 1367 O.S. (14th January 1367 N.S.); Bordeaux, France (44N50 000W34);
10.00 am LMT (10.02.16 GMT). Shakespeares Kings by John Julius Norwich (Penguin 2000). p54: Joan of
Kent had been delivered of her second son at the stroke of ten on the morning of the Feast of the Epiphany,
Wednesday 6th January 1367, in the Abbey of St. Andrew at Bordeaux.
On Saturday 7th February 2004 BBC1 broadcast a BAFTA tribute to Ronnie Barker, and it was fitting that it
should be his old friend and co-star Ronnie Corbett who should present him with his award. Their successful
show The Two Ronnies with its blend of mock news items, sketches, Corbetts monologues delivered from a
huge armchair and Barkers verbal dexterity coming to the fore through his spokesmans announcements,
rounded off by splendid musical number, ran from 1971 to 1987. The scripts were written by several hands,
not least a certain Gerald Wiley who turned out to be Ronnie Barker himself.
RONNIE BARKER: 25th September 1929; Bedford (52N08 000W29); 2.00 pm BST (13.00 GMT). Pete Watson
quotes a letter from Barker.
RONNIE CORBETT 4th December 1940; Edinburgh (55N57 003W13); 9.40 pm (21.40) GMT. Letter from him
to David Fisher; birth certificate confirms.
Gone but not forgotten...
Comedian, game show host and former scriptwriter Bob Monkhouse died in the early hours of 29th December
2003. He was the king of the one-line quip; it didnt matter what topic you threw at him, he could extract a
joke from it. At one time, his involvement with game shows tended to obscure his abilities as a comedian, but
in later years he returned to the night-club and cabaret circuit. He had been on TV since the early 1950s.
BOB MONKHOUSE: 1st June 1928; Beckenham (51N23 000W02); 2.00am BST (01.00 GMT). Letter from
him to David Fisher.
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NOTES FROM A YORKSHIRE ASTROLOGER by David Fisher
It will not surprise you to know that, as an astrologer and frequent buyer of part-work publications, for the last
three years I have been subscribing to something called Learn and Understand Astrology, published by the
French company Hachette.
I would estimate that about 60% or 65% is devoted to astrology - Western astrology mostly, but also Chinese,
Hindu, Hebrew and even Egyptian. But there are also sections on the Tarot and other forms of divination,
some of which are new to me. In addition there are sections covering myths, symbols, dreams, reincarnation
etc.
Naturally in a massive and ambitious work such as this, there are bound to be errors and Hachette have
already published one or two errata sheets. I am prepared to concede that many of the errors are of the
typographical variety, such as the degrees in which the major Fixed Stars reside. Some of the stars positions
are out by several degrees, however, and it is only when one realises that the stars take 72 years to move
just one degree that the enormity of the errors become apparent.
Yet there can be no excuse for errors of fact. Two of the earliest things new astrologers are made to realise
are that Mercury can never be more than 28 degrees, and Venus never more than 48 degrees, from the Sun.
But amongst the delineations for the aspects one finds four which simply dont exist: Sun sextile and square
both Mercury and Venus. I wrote to the publishers about these errors more than a year ago, but never
received a reply.
These complaints apart, however, Learn and Understand Astrology (and the Arts of Divination, to add the
smaller subtitle) is a rather impressive work. Even though I have been a student of astrology since the mid-
1970s, this publication has made me learn a little bit more about my birth-chart, particularly with regard to the
Moons Nodes and the retrograde planets. I would certainly recommend it to those who are thinking of taking
up our cherished subject. One is also shown how to draw up a birth chart, a feature often sadly lacking from
books for beginners.
FREE ASTROLOGY TEXTS ON THE INTERNET - by Val Dobson
There is a tremendous amount of information on the internet - the equivalent of thousands of reference
libraries; for those who cant easily get to a library, or who cannot afford books, the internet is a wonderful
invention. There are many, many books that can be downloaded for free, to be printed out and read at leisure
- these include much of the writings of the classical and ancient ages. The list below (compiled with the
invaluable help of Kim Farnell) will be of particular interest to astrologers.
Note Nearly all of these texts are old and out of copyright. However, a few works are still in copyright, and will
therefore have restrictions on their use; please read and observe these restrictions.
Considerations of Guido Bonatus www.panplanet.com/library/bonatus
From Humanistic to Transpersonal Astrology by Dane Rudhyar (1975) www.khaldea.com/rudhyar/fromhtot_1
An Attempt at Formulating Minimal Requirements for the Practice of Astrology by Dane Rudhyar
www.khaldea.com/rudhyar/attempt
A Handbook for the Humani sti c Astrol oger Mi chael Meyer http://books.i uni verse.com/
viewbooks.asp?isbn=0595089356&page=fm3
The Ancient Greek Sacred Lunar Month 1999, Apollonius Sophistes www.cs.utk.edu/~mclennan/OM/
BA/PT/BA/SM
The Ancient Greek Esoteric Doctrine of The Elements 1998, John Opsopaus www.cs.utk.edu/~mclennan/
OM/BA/PT/BA/AGEDE/
The Eightfold Year and the Stages of Life 1995, John Opsopaus www.cs.utk.edu/~mclennan/OM/BA/
PT/BA/EYSL
PLANETARY QUALITIES an anthroposophical view by Bibi van Bussel www.xs4all.nl/~busbi
Astro-Diagnosis A Guide To Healing by Max Heindel and Augusta Foss Heindel www.rosicrucian.com/
adh/adheng01
Astrology Theologised Valentin Weigel (1553-1588) www.passtheword.org/DIALOGS-FROM-THE-PAST/weigel
Abu Mashar - Libri mysteriorum, The astrological metaphors (HTML format): translated by Giuseppe Bezza
www.cieloeterra.it/eng/eng.testi.metafore/eng.metafore
Bullinger, E. W. - The Witness of the Stars http://philologos.org/__eb-tws/
Culpeper, Nicholas - The English Physitian (1652) www.med.yale.edu/library/historical/culpeper/culpeper
Morin, Jean Baptiste - The Cabal of the Twelve Houses Astrological www.skyscript.co.uk/cabal
Ptolemy - Tetrabiblos 1 www.kronosofia.dk/frames/side/biblioteket/tetrabiblos/tetrabiblos
Mnemonic Arts of Blessed Raymond LULL www.lullianarts.net
Ebenezer Sibly - A New and Complete Illustration of the Occult Sciences, Book 4 www.esotericarchives.com/
solomon/sibly4
Light Of Egypt, The; or, The science of the soul and the stars Volume 2 by Burgoyne, Thomas H.
www.gutenberg.net/browse/BIBREC/BR1650
Astrology and The Ductless Glands by Max Heindel http://fraktali.849pm.com/rosen1
Living In Time by Palden Jenkins www.isleofavalon.co.uk/time
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The Historical Ephemeris from -600 to 2200 Astrological tables and historical timelines demonstrating the
relationship between world historical trends/events and planetary movements for the use of historians and
astrologers, by Palden Jenkins www.isleofavalon.co.uk/ephem
The 12 Signs of the Zodiac by C.E.O. Carter www.digthatcrazyfarout.com/carter/Carter_Leo
History of Astrology by Derek and Julia Parker www.meta-religion.com/Esoterism/Astrology/
history_of_astrology
All the following can be downloaded from www.panplanet.com/library/downloads:
John Gadbury - Doctrine of Horary Astrology
Guido Bonatus - Anima Astrologiae
Sepharial - Primary Directions Made Easy
Sepharial - Astrology and Marriage
Jerome Cardin - Choice Aphorisms
Anthony Griffin - Theft
Considerations on the Fundamental of Astrology - Kepler
Electional Astrology - Vivian Robson
ASTROLOGY, SPACE & TIME by Dr. Andrew Black
Introduction
Much has been written about the nature of space and time. Unfortunately the esoteric delights of Quantum
Theory and Relativity Theory are accessible to only a few, and most of us have neither the time nor the
inclination to study the necessary mathematics and physics to understand the equations underlying the
various models of space and time, (or of some combination of them). Also, while there may be some excellent
non-technical books about these weighty matters, which make it a joy to ponder the indeterminate status of
Schrodingers Cat (poor thing!) as an alternative to counting sheep when insomnia prevails, there is little of
practical use for most of us who are simply trying to make some sense of lifes existence, and to better
understand our place in the cosmos.
Most of us already understand enough about space and time to run our lives, at least at the level of knowing
that in order to meet up with someone, it helps if you arrange to meet at the same place at the same time.
Any failure to meet is not likely to be due to Quantum effects, or the misapplication of Relativity Theory. We
have some idea of how to get around in space, and we understand that we are born, we grow older and we
die, sooner or later. We can use calendars, clocks, maps and our memories to simplify dealing with space
and time, and to increase precision, but this is a convenience rather than a necessity.
So why bother to look any further? Does it really make any practical difference to our lives whether space on
the scale of the universe is flat or curved, whether the universe will expand forever following the Big Bang,
whether Time is linear, cyclical, helical, multidimensional or whatever? I am asking here whether it really
matters to the ordinary person.
Most people would probably say that, when compared with the importance of our daily activities, our families,
friends, relationships and ambitions, these philosophical abstractions about space and time are pretty irrelevant.
With respect to Astrology, which is very involved with space and time, there are really three questions.
(1) Is it worth our expending energy on studying the nature of space and time at all, except out of a legitimate
curiosity?
(2) Can Astrology make any useful contributions to our understanding of space and time from within its own
discipline?
(3) If the answer to question (2) is affirmative, can these contributions be translated into terms that are easy
to understand, and that make sense to the layman.
The answer to the first question must be a personal one in the first instance, but let us see how an understanding
of Astrology might lead to some insights about space and time.
Astrology and Astronomy
There is sometimes considerable misunderstanding about the difference between Astronomy and Astrology,
and for those who are not clear about the similarities and the differences I include a link in the bibliography.
At first sight, Astrological space involves of the surfaces of two spheres, the surface of the earth, (approximately
spherical), and the surface of the celestial sphere. However, the two surfaces can be placed into one-to-one
correspondence, in the sense that any unique point on the surface of the earth can be paired up with a unique
point on the celestial sphere. One way of doing this is to relate each point on the surface of the earth to the
equivalent point on the celestial sphere that is directly overhead. We can therefore make do with only one
sphere, though in practice Astrologers tend to think in terms of the earths surface when calculating the
Angles and Houses in a chart, while considering projection on to the celestial sphere for the planets. It is
worth mentioning here that the Astrologer needs to know the place of birth, (or of an event), in order to
calculate the Angles and Houses in a chart, though it is not necessary for calculating the positions of the
planets.
It is quite possible to draw up a 3-D horoscope on the surface of the earth, and/or to project this onto the
celestial sphere. However this is not often performed, and most horoscopes are 2-D with the planets and
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house cusps being projected on to a Great Circle. This has the advantage of making a horoscope easier to
read for many Astrologers, but it also leads to meaningless arguments as to which projection is the correct
one!
We can leave aside for the moment the question of whether the surface of a sphere is a 2-D manifold, (where
a point can be defined by just two coordinates, such as longitude and latitude), or whether the surface of a
sphere is really embedded in 3-D space where 3 coordinates define a point, (e.g. along x,y,z axes).
Astrology, (and Astronomy, in so far as it is used in Astrological calculations), as we know them, appear
therefore to be closely involved with the surface of a sphere as the relevant space.
What about time? Well, Astrologers cannot draw up a horoscope at all if they do not know the time, if time is
meant in the normal way - year, month, day, hour, minute and seconds. However knowing the time of an event
to within a few minutes normally allows an accurate chart, and ideally the time should be known as accurately
as possible. Assuming for the moment that time is linear, and that for present purposes we are concerned
with horoscopes for events between, say, 5000 B.C. and 25000 A.D., (which ought to satisfy most people),
we need only to know, (as accurately as possible), where during that 30000 year period our particular time is
situated. Although there are many possible times within this period, they all lie at unique points along this
long time line. Astrology therefore uses just one dimension of time, in this sense.
Yet there is a paradox here. In addition to natal Astrology, or the study of the birth chart itself, set up for a
given time, astrologers also use charts cast for different times, and use them to forecast trends or events. A
common and logical technique is to examine the transits, that is to compare the positions of the planets now
with their positions in the natal horoscope, looking for some relationship between the two sets of positions.
What is seemingly less logical, at first sight, is the use of primary directions and secondary progressions,
and even converse directions and progressions. These methods rely on drawing up charts for times other than
the birth time or the present moment. It is not intuitively obvious that a chart drawn up for a time 30 days after
birth should bear any relation to the life of a person aged 30, yet the successful use of secondary progressions
suggests that there must be a link somewhere.
In one sense only one time dimension is involved, but in another sense it is as though there are several
dimensions of time that are independent yet linked in some way. And somehow one can go backwards, as
it were, if converse techniques are valid.
In the case of some techniques, units of time and units of space can almost be interchanged in a sense. A
horoscope drawn up for 2 hours after a birth time, (equivalent to age 30 using primary directions), is almost
exactly the same as a chart drawn for the original birth time at a place 30 degrees to the west (at the same
latitude). the Moon will have moved a degree or so, and some of the planets a few minutes of arc, but that is
all. The house cusps will be the same.
Whatever the reality, Astrology certainly appears to treat space and time as though they can be dealt with
rather more flexibly than ordinary experience would suggest.
Consciousness, Space and Time
Over the last few hundred years, advances in optics have enabled us to extend our normal visual abilities to
study distant objects through telescopes, and small objects through microscopes. In this sense, some of the
limits on our ability to explore space have been removed. When it comes to time, technological advances
allow us to see models of protracted processes occurring very quickly, or of brief processes being slowed
down. We can press the fast forward button, or we can view frame by frame.
While these advances have given us better insights into the evolution of lifes processes, and allowed us to
examine space and time at different scales, has this progress really increased our understanding at a personal
level? Does it increase our understanding of subjective time, of the apparent quickening of the passage of time
as we grow older for example? Not in any obvious way, to my mind.
While individuals who are interested in the philosophy of Astrology may indeed ponder space and time, the
materials with which they are closely involved, and may form their own models to aid their understanding, they
would still probably find it hard to argue with the layman who suggests, (perhaps), that time appears to go
twice as fast at age 60 as it does at age 30 because, in percentage terms, two years at age 60 is equivalent
to one year at age 30. The layman might be right or wrong, but it would be difficult to use understandings
gleaned from Astrology to affirm or to refute his plausible explanation.
No, I think it is better to go about exploring time in an entirely different way. We can come back to Astrology
later.
A Different Approach to Time
On December 2nd 1875, the Author J. W. Dunne was born, and in 1927 his seminal work An Experiment with
Time was published. I first came across this book when I was about 18, when browsing in a library. I was
foolish enough to lend the copy I bought to someone who had the sense to hang on to it. I currently have the
1964 edition, and have not made the mistake of lending this copy to anybody! An Experiment with Time was
out of print for many years, but I have discovered that the book is now available again. I would recommend that
anyone with an interest in time read An Experiment with Time.
The book is written in such a way that it is difficult to convey the compelling nature of Dunnes well-argued
case, and his work might seem more like detective fiction rather than fact, at first reading. If I were to be asked
to select the one book that had had the most influence on the way I live my life, and on my attempts to
understand the human condition, I would unhesitatingly choose An Experiment with Time.
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In a nutshell, (and in an informal way), here is the gist of the story. Dunne describes how he appeared to have
a disturbing ability to have dreams in which he dreamed about events that occurred while he was awake.
Nothing too abnormal about that you might think. Most of us are aware of at least some of our dreams, and
can remember some of them upon waking. The vast majority of people must have had the experience of doing
something out of the ordinary during the day, and then dreaming about it again during the ensuing night. The
problem for Dunne was that he sometimes had this sort of dream the night before the waking event.
Initially he was concerned that he might be going barmy, but fortunately he investigated other individuals and
found that some of them apparently also had dreams relating to events that occurred in the future. Somewhat
relieved that he was not alone, he asked himself why this sort of phenomenon only occurred in dreams. He
then realised that he was begging the question, and he demonstrated that under certain conditions this
apparent seeing into the future could occur when awake.
Dunne gave detailed instructions in his book, for those who wanted to look into matters for themselves.
Basically this involves 4 steps.
(1) Have some dreams.
(2) Record the dreams in writing when you wake up, before you forget them.
(3) Review the record of the dreams a day or two later.
(4) See if an unusual waking event, described in the record, has occurred since the related dream.
This looks simple, but as Dunne points out, the mind plays all sort of tricks on the would be researcher, where
dreams are involved. Note that only unusual events count. There would be no prizes for dreaming of driving to
work, since such a dream could just as easily relate to a previous commuting trip, as to a future one. Dunne
stresses the importance of detail in recording your dreams. Dreaming of seeing a car accident, and then
seeing a car accident the following day would not necessarily be convincing. However, dreaming of seeing an
upside-down yellow truck, with green mudguards, by the side of the road, with a tall man wearing a striped
blue and pink anorak standing beside the front of the truck, would be convincing, (provided that you had
recorded this detail in the dream, and noticed it again in the waking experience the following day).
Essentially Dunne found that most of his experimental subjects have some dreams that clearly relate to
previous waking events, a similar number of dreams that clearly relate to future waking events, and many
dreams that dont appear to relate to anything very much at all in waking life.
Armed with these results, Dunne set about developing a theory to explain his findings. Essentially he arrived
at a model where there is more than one dimension of time, indeed he found that there is an infinite regress
involving an infinite number of dimensions of time. However he argued that the significance of each further
dimension decreases, so that for practical purposes three dimensions of time are probably sufficient.
Dunne argued that when we are awake, our consciousness keeps our focus of attention firmly in the here and
now, paying attention to what is going on around us. When we are asleep, there is not normally much in the
way of stimulation in the here and now, and the focus of attention shifts to now in the second dimension of
time. As Dunne pointed out, the whole time-length of the first dimension of time is accessible, (rather like a
dimension of space), when attention is moving along the now of the second time dimension, hence an
explanation of his dream effect.
Dunne goes on to discuss the implications of there being several time dimensions in his model. He argues
persuasively that if his model is correct, (or even along the right lines), there is a highly convincing argument
in favour of immortality. OK, we may die in the first dimension of time, but we live on in the second and higher
dimensions of time. It will be a bit confusing at first, just as dreams are confusing if we expect ordinary rules
of behaviour to apply.
Dunne also discusses the false antithesis between Free Will and Determinism. Some of his critics were
quick to argue that his model demonstrated that the future was fixed or predetermined in all dimensions if his
model was accurate. Dunne was well able to argue that this was not the case, and his arguments were
certainly no weaker than those put up by other supporters of Free Will.
Those of you lucky enough to have experienced (and recorded) the phenomenon of having a dream, then of
waking up into what gradually turns out to be another dream, and finally waking up into consciousness have
probably experienced awareness in the third dimension of time, a curious world where things might have
happened, (but didnt), and might happen in the future, (but probably wont, unless you are a Determinist, in
which case they definitely wont!)
If you have a headache by now, this is probably a sign of good mental health! Most of us are thoroughly
unaccustomed to thinking along these lines. Things get easier from now on.
Back to Astrology
We looked at the celestial sphere as Astrologys space, and we cheated a bit by leaving Astrology for a
detailed look at Dunnes model of time. Dunnes model of time involves many dimensions of time, at right
angles to each other in a Euclidean sense. How does this fit in with Astrology, if it fits in at all?
Well, provided we make one small refinement, Dunnes model works very well with Astrology.
If the natal horoscope is the starting point for all work, then transits measured along the time line would
correspond to the first dimension of time. Progressions could work along a second dimension of time, directions
along a third, and so on, for example.
Unfortunately if the time dimensions are strictly at right angles in a Euclidean sense, this set up will not work.
Any movement along one axis will occur entirely independently of movement along any other axis.
You will perhaps remember that earlier in this article I said that We can leave aside for the moment the
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question of whether the surface of a sphere is a 2-D manifold, (where a point can be defined by just two
coordinates, such as longitude and latitude), or whether the surface of a sphere is really embedded; in 3-D
space where 3 coordinates define a point, (e.g. along x,y,z axes).
Let us choose another system of coordinates for the spherical surface that represents the earth. We could
equally apply the system to surface of the celestial sphere, as the two surfaces can be placed in one-to-one
correspondence, but it is possibly easier to visualise using the surface of the earth.
Consider the origin of the x,y,z system of Cartesian coordinates to be at the North Pole, (for the sake of
simplicity).
Let the x-y plane be tangent to the earths surface at the North Pole, with the z axis passing through both
poles in a straight line through the centre of the earth, and extending beyond the earths surface in a straight
line in both directions.
Let the x axis lie tangent to the surface of the earth in such a way that when viewed from directly above the
North Pole the x axis looks as though it lies along the longitude 0 degrees and longitude 180 degrees circle.
Let the y axis lie tangent to the surface of the earth in such a way that when viewed from directly above the
North Pole the y axis looks as though it lies along the longitude 90 degrees east and longitude 90 degrees
west circle.
Now let us change the rules a bit and say that although the x, y and z axes are at right angles at the origin,
(the North Pole), the x axis and the y axis follow the surface of the earth round the great circles that they
project onto. The infinite straight lines in Euclidean space that were the x and y axes, are now great circles in
positively curved spherical space. Those who speculate about the structure of space-time commonly produce
models involving positive or negative curvature, so I have no problem with accepting this modification. (The z
axis might be positively curved as well, but for the moment let us assume that if there is any curvature, the z
axis is locally straight in the Euclidean sense, so that it passes through both poles and the earths centre).
Now let us perform a similar act for the first three dimensions of time. Let us suppose that two of these three
time axes follow geodesics on a 2-D (mathematical) spherical surface, again with the origin at the North Pole
of this rather ghostly time-sphere surface. (Again for the moment let us assume the third axis is locally
straight in the Euclidean sense).
At last we have a rationale for the progressions. Movement along our new x axis, (now a great circle), is no
longer independent of movement along the z axis. If we travel theta radians from the North Pole along the 0
longitude line, (the x axis), we shall, by virtue of the properties of any sphere, inescapably move a short
distance along the z axis as well. This distance will be numerically equal to 1 - cosine theta, (a fairly small
distance for small theta, but a distance nevertheless). Under these circumstances, it might make sense to
use a day for a year progressions, since the day would be measured along a different axis from the year.
The point is that movement in along the two axes would be inextricably connected.
One could speculate that the primary directions involve a third dimension of time. It is interesting that the
progressions involve a day for a year (365 to 1 ratio), while the primary directions involve four minutes for a
year (360 times 365 to 1 ratio). Those figures of 365 and 360 are not very different.
How about the hastening of the passage of time with age? Well, a model like this gives a rate of change
equivalent to sine theta, which for small angles is approximately equal to theta. So the rate at which you age
depends on how much you have aged already. Maybe the layman could be right after all!
Conclusion
While I have long been familiar with the concept of many dimensions of time, I have only recently started to
look at the implications of one or more of these dimensions having curvature. Further updates to follow as I
explore further.
Relevant Links
Amazon for books, including J. W. Dunnes An Experiment with Time
The Lucidity Institute for much useful info about dreaming, including being consciously aware whilst dreaming
J. W. Dunne - a site that looks at the first chapters of the book
Astronomy and Astrology - a brief article about their similarities and differences
Dr Andrew Black has written for both Transit and the AA Journal.
APAI DAY
Date: 20th March 2004. Venue: the Sophia Centre at Bath Spa University, UK.
How many astrologers are totally happy with the way their work is progressing and with the salary they are
able to command? Is it an income equivalent to other professions?
Do you have to subsidise your income in order to have a decent standard of living or have you simply decided
to settle for less? Does this bring you enough fulfilment? Or would you appreciate a helping hand and some
first class advice as to how you could improve your standing as an astrologer in your community and indeed,
as professional astrologers generally, in the world?
The Sophia Centre is very kindly hosting a special day, on behalf of the Association of Professional Astrologers
International, for both Members and Non Members and their friends. This has been designed as a day to relax
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with fellow astrologers and other like-minded people. We have invited two first class speakers from the world
of commerce. Our first speaker is Olivia Stefanino, an executive business coach. Olivia will show us how to
use the power of language to achieve the impossible; how to create rapport with our clients and with the press
and how to develop professionalism and credibility.
Our second speaker, Fiona Hayes has worked as a Feng Shui Consultant and Hypnotherapist for many
years. Fiona promises to show us how to maximise our potential and achieve our goals as astrologers, using
simple but powerful techniques.
As well as our two speakers, our host for the day, Nick Campion, a senior lecturer at Bath Spa, will briefly
introduce the courses offered by the Sophia Centre, which is home to the new MA course in Cultural Astronomy
and Astrology.
The cost, including a special lunch and refreshments, will be just 25. To book your place, send a cheque
made out to APAI, to the organiser, Robyn Ray at 1 The Ridings, Brighton. BN2 7AE. For further details
telephone 01273 309788 or go to the APAI website: www.professionalastrologers.org.
A map and directions for the Sophia Centre, along with information on the Cultural Astronomy and Astrology
course, can be found on the Sophia Centres web page: www.bathspa.ac.uk/schools/historical-and-cultural-
studies/sophia
THE COMPANY OF ASTROLOGERS GREEK ISLAND SUMMER SCHOOL
The Company of Astrologers invites you to their Greek Island Summer School on the beautiful island of
Lefkada in the Ionian Sea. The courses are organized and taught by Company tutor Joanna Watters (author
of Astrology for Today and Tarot for Today, both published by Carroll & Brown, 2003). Guest tutor: TV Times
astrologer, Sally Kirkman.
Monday 10 May - Sunday 16 May & Monday 6 September - 12 September:
From Information to Meaning: Bringing Astrology to Life
Level: Intermediate
This course is designed to bridge that all important gap from technical astrological knowledge to meaningful
interpretation. When we look at a horoscope for the first time, how do we move on it? The aim is to bring the
chart to life, to translate information into meaning, to explore the nature of astrological symbolism and to
introduce guidelines to client work.
Monday 24 May - Sunday 30 May & Monday 20 September - Sunday 26 September:
Astrology in Action
Level: Intermediate/Advanced
This course will focus on working with individual horoscopes, both celebrities and clients. Transits and
progressions will be covered in depth. Students will also be encouraged to work on their own charts and to
bring along any astrological material of personal interest.
Monday 7 June - Sunday 13 June & Monday 4 October - Sunday 10 October:
Talking Tarot
Level: Beginners
This course will discuss and explore the symbolism of all the 78 Tarot cards. The aim of the course is to
discover how the Tarot really works and how to conduct and interpret readings at a general level and for
specific questions.
Monday 21 June - Sunday 27 June & Monday 18 October - Sunday 24 October:
Working With Tarot
Level: Intermediate
This course will revise the symbolism of the 78 Tarot cards and discuss the nature of interpretation and
predictions. The aim is to demonstrate the Tarot at work, to develop reading skills and to introduce guidelines
to working with clients.
Forget classrooms! All courses are held outside on a large vine-leaf covered terrace, a stones throw from the
beach. Morning sessions 10.00 - 13.30, reconvening for evening sessions 17.00 - 19.00. This allows for siesta
or beach time, whichever you prefer! Weekend flights from Gatwick, Heathrow or Manchester to Preveza.
Transfer time 40 minutes. Cost: 150 exclusive of flights and accommodation, which can be organized on
your behalf.
For more information or to reserve a place contact:
Joanna Watters - tel/fax 003026450 92943 or email joannaw@hol.gr
Sally Kirkman - tel/fax 01483 890817 or email salkirkman@aol.com
The Company of Astrologers - 01227 362427 or email admin@coa.org.uk or by post: PO Box 792, Canterbury
CT2 8WR UK
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ASTROLOGICAL SOCIETY NEWS, COURSES etc.
Announcing the birth of AYA, The Association for Young Astrologers: A Community of Support and Education
- Reach, Teach, Inspire
Charter: AYA is committed to providing educational opportunities for anyone interested in astrology, with a
focus on outreach to young people discovering astrology. We believe that bringing youth into astrology is vital
and necessary. Our group stands in full support of young astrologers and offers a community where they can
learn and be inspired.
Birth Chart: Sunday January 11th, 2004. 12:15 pm MST, Prescott, Arizona, USA
Where are all the young astrologers? Throughout the astrological community, this is one of the most urgent
questions being asked today. There are a number of young astrologers out there, and more importantly, an
even larger number of young people interested in becoming astrologers, or at least learning more about
astrology. What these people have not previously had is a way to come together as a community.
By creating AYA, we hope that the question, Where are all the young astrologers? will never need to be
asked again. We feel that having an organization specifically created for the purpose of supporting young
astrologers, while being wide open to all ages, will ensure that people curious about astrology will always
have a friendly place to go to have that passion nurtured.
If you are interested in joining this community (currently based online), or if you have any suggestions or
ideas that could help us on our journey, please contact Amy (xpraesaepe@hotmail.com) or Terri
(terplewa@msn.com )
How about trying an Astrology Intensive Weekend in Wales? From the 19th - 21st March, Steve Judd is
holding residential workshops and classes suitable for all abilities, covering a range of techniques and teachings.
There will also be time for meditation, a look at the skies, a 30-minute personal consultation with Steve and
a visit to the local hostelry. The venue is the Hafanycoed Centre for Spiritual Development, located on the
edge of the Brecon Beacons in South Wales, about twenty miles north east of Swansea; set in an area of
outstanding natural beauty, the centre has springs, mountains and waterfalls all within walking distance. The
fee of 150 covers everything, including meals, accommodation and your personal consultation. There will
also be the option of receiving hour long individual sessions in Moving Massage to enhance good posture
and relieve muscular aches and pains, from Steves partner Karen Freed. Bring your telescopes/binoculars if
you have them, as well as any ephemerides you may have lying around.
Contact Steve via email: Steve@stevejudd.com, or by post: P.O.Box 3520, Bath, BA1 7XQ, UK
The Faculty of Astrological Studies is holding its Summer School on 13th-20th August this year. Venue:
Brasenose College, Oxford.
The Summer School is always hugely popular and great fun to attend as well as being a fantastic learning
opportunity allowing those attending not simply to hear some of the best and most respected international
astrologers lecture but have the unique opportunity to actually study with them over an extended period. The
Summer School is open to all whether full time students or those simply wishing to focus on some special
area of astrology for their own enjoyment. It is also open to non-residential day delegates. Brasnose College
is very beautiful and although most ancient and historic it also offers modern comforts: en-suite accommodation
and excellent food. Oxford itself is a treasure trove of wonderful buildings and interesting shops, pubs etc.
There are evening lectures, musical entertainment, the college bar in the evenings and a Gala Dinner on
Thursday night.
For a brochure and further details contact Carole Taylor. To book, contact: Joanne Long. Or phone: 07000
790143 or 020 8516 9473
The FAS also holds weekend courses and five-day courses. The weekend courses are: Relating (tutor Joyce
Hoen), and Astrology and Divination (tutor Geoffrey Cornelius). The five-day courses are: Beginners Week,
Back to Basics, The Magic of Astrology, Astrological Techniques with guest tutors Nicholas Campion, Darby
Costello, Bernard Eccles, Liz Greene, Rob Hand, Mike Harding, Robin Heath, Melanie Reinhart plus Faculty
Tutors
It is possible to enrol for Distance Learning Modules at any point in the year both at Foundation and Diploma
level. Enrol now for Autumn London Classes: Foundation and Diploma starting October 2004. Details
email:info@astrology.org.uk. Phone: 07000 790143 or 020 8516 9473
Report on Faculty Day 2004:
Faculty Day came early this year but in spite of the fact that it was held in early February we were blessed
with a beautiful spring day.
The Faculty was delighted to congratulate all of the new Certificate and Diploma holders, some of whom had
won special awards for outstanding achievement. And judging by the rapturous applause, friends and family
were overjoyed to see their loved ones being acknowledged for their hard work and intense dedication.
There were some familiar faces - Roy Gillett was there to demonstrate astrological software and this year
Barry Street from the Astrology Shop brought along a wonderful selection of astrology books.
Darby Costello gave a fascinating talk on how to navigate the waters of Saturn in Cancer and Uranus in
Pisces. She described how we were going into imaginal waters and stressed the importance of keeping a
bridge between what is familiar and what isnt. With Saturn in Cancer we fear being capsized by the
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unpredictability of Uranus in Pisces. Our family security is being threatened and we feel unsafe, and yet we
need to stay awake to where we are being led..
She looked at the last time that Uranus was in Pisces, when Hubble saw that the universe was expanding.
At the same time Einsten didnt dare to believe what he saw mathematically - that the universe was indeed
expanding. In fact, it is now 100 times bigger than it had been when Hubble was born. With Uranus in Pisces
we see the world differently - what is marginal becomes centred. She described what happened when the
explorer Cortes landed and how the natives on the shoreline didnt see the ships on the horizon because they
had no point of reference for them. Similarly, we are beginning to sense something beyond the boundaries of
what we could imagine and we will have to wait a while before we are able to see the world differently. With
Saturn the information is coming into our homes as things leak in through television and the internet.
Darby suggested that we now have the right emotional tonality to communicate through barriers and boundaries.
Worlds can flow and interconnect in a way in which they havent for a long time. Science, Astrology and Art
are re-entering a fruitful period.
This was a most illuminating talk and gave us a real sense of the exciting and challenging times we are living
in.
Everyone had an opportunity to mix and mingle and share their thoughts and ideas - the room was positively
buzzing! We would like to thank everyone for making Faculty Day 2004 such an uplifting and enjoyable
occasion.
The Astrological Lodge of London are holding a Spring Seminar on the 14th March 10am - 5pm. With
Mike Edwards, Bernard Eccles and others. Members: 20 booked in advance, 25 on the door; non-members:
25 booked in advance, 30 on the door; concessions: 5 off all the above prices.
The ALL meet every Monday evening for a lecture, members class and discussion. 7.00pm at the Theosophical
Society, 50 Gloucester Place, London W1. Members: 4.00, non-members: 6.00.
March 1st - Frank Clifford Speaking Your Chart
8th March - Nick Kollerstrom Planting By The Moon
15th March - Komilla Sutton Chaitra Shukla (Vedic astrology)
22nd March - Mike Edwards On the Horoscope of Buddhas Enlightenment
29th March - Colin Price & Kim Farnell The ALL and the Theosophical Society
5th April - Christine Chalklin Healing with Astrology and the Bach Flower Remedies
More information on the ALL website
The Bristol School of Astrology is holding a one-day seminar on April 17th, on The Feminine in Astrology,
looking at Venus, the Moon, the asteroid goddesses and how people relate. The BSA also offer astrology
courses and classes, including distance learning. For more information, go to their website at
www.bristolschoolofastrology.freeserve.co.uk or contact Liz Seddon at emseddon@aol.com.
Two Astrology Workshops in New York City!
Saturday and Sunday, March 26-27, 2004 at the Source of Life Center, 352 Seventh Avenue - 16th Floor, New
York City
Saturday, March 27, 2004 10:30 am - 4:30 pm
Renewed Visions of a 21st Century Astrology: Innovations in Global Study with Nick Campion (Bath Spa
University & Kepler College), John Marchesella (NYC NCGR) Glenn Perry (Association of Astrological
Psychology, Darcy Woodall (Faculty of Astrological Studies)
Now for the first time since the Renaissance, it is possible for students of astrology to choose from a rich
array of educational resources and opportunities - from local classes to distance learning programs. Whether
you study astrology for your own personal enjoyment or you are interested in achieving professional qualifications
at the Certificate or Diploma level, or would like to gain a BA or MA in astrological studies, there is a route for
everyone. Representatives from five schools and universities in Britain and the United States will discuss
what each program has to offer and how you can tailor them to meet your astrological goals.
Sunday, March 28, 2004 10:30 am - 4:30 pm
Through the Mists of Time with Nick Campion
The present is separated from the past by just a few blinks of the eye. As the Psalm says, a thousand years
is but a day for God. This workshop will take a romp through the mundane astrology of the last three
thousand years. Nick will look at the basics of Babylonian astrology, eclipse texts from ancient Egypt,
national charts, how the theory of family relationships opens new ways of working with mundane astrology,
national horoscopes and outer planet cycles. The key to a creative mundane astrology is thinking flexibly.
To register, go to www.astrologynyc.org & click on Events!
LOCAL GROUP NEWS
The West Wickham Astrology Club has just started up in Kent, organised by Lawrie Simnet (who has been
an Astrological Association member even longer than I have!). By the time you read this, theyll have had
their inaugural monthly meeting, but Lawrie can be contacted at wwastro@tiscali.co.uk, or 47 Chessington
Way, West Wickham, Kent BR4 9NY. The WWAC have a website at www.genastrology.co.uk.
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The Bolton Astrological Society is holding its annual Spring Conference on Saturday 27th March 2004 at
the Ukrainian Centre, Castle Street, Bolton. Time: 10.30 - 4.30. The cost will be 25, including lunch. Sue
Tompkins will be giving two talks; the morning talk will be on Aspects, the afternoon talk will be on Forecasting.
For tickets and more information, contact Jennifer Miller 01942 810743 boltonastrolsoc@yahoo.com
The Scottish Astrological Association are holding their annual conference in Edinburgh on the 18th - 19th
September. Im mentioning this early so that you can be sure to book time off and get your tickets early - Noel
Tyl is going to be their guest of honour! More details, and a booking form, are on the SAAs website:
www.lunatica.fsnet.co.uk.
The SAA are also holding two weekend workshops, on the 19th and 20th June. One will be with John Frawley,
the other wi l l be wi th Frank Cl i fford. Ful l detai l s on thei r websi te, or from Cathy Meek:
cathymeek@blueyonder.co.uk
The SAA hold regular talks at The Theosophical Society, 28 Great King St, Edinburgh on Wednesdays 7.30
p.m.
Still in Scotland, Aquarius Rising is the West of Scotland Astrology Association. They meet monthly in
Glasgow; on March 23rd, Nik Fernee will be talking about Japanese astrology and on April 27th, Frida Edis
wi l l be tal ki ng about the MC poi nt. For further detai l s, contact secretary Maggi Wi l son at
maggi7.wilson@ntlworld.com or write to: Aquarius Rising, The West of Scotland Astrological Association,
Room 247, 74 Victoria Crescent Road, Glasgow G12 9JN. Telephone: 0141 337 6144
The Old Windsor Astrology Club will be holding a Saturday Seminar on March 6th, with Richard Swatton,
on The Dynamics of Transits. Time: 10.00am to 3.30pm. Fee for the day is 25.00. Bookings to: Dawn Roffe
DFAstrolS, Old Windsor Astrology Club, 12 Warrington Spur, Old Windsor, Berks, SL4 2NF. Lunch will not be
provided - please bring a packed lunch or be prepared to visit one of several local pubs! For details on how to
get here please email Dawn at info@oldwindsorastrologyclub.co.uk. Further details on the website:
www.oldwindsorastrologyclub.co.uk
The OWAC hold regular meetings on the third Thursday of the month at Old Windsor Day Centre, Straight
Road (A308), Old Windsor, Berks (opposite The Toby restaurant). Meetings start at 8pm (although doors are
open at 7.30pm) and finish at 10.30pm. Members 3.00. Non-members 5.00. Contact Dawn for further
details.
The Wessex Astrology Circle hold their meetings on the second Wednesday of the month from 7.30 to
9.30pm at The Whites Room at Broadstone Community Centre, 21 Dunyeats Road, Broadstone, Dorset.
Charge: 3.50. Enquiries: Eileen McAdam 01202 697610, email EileenMcAdam@aol.com. WAC also hold
regular astrology classes, given by professional astrologer and teacher Paul Newman
In Bristol, Acturus Rising meets monthly in the Friends Meeting House, Hampton Road, Redlands. On the
31st March, the topic will be Aries & the Zodiac; on the 21st April, it will be Eclipses; (appropriately
between a partial Solar eclipse and a Lunar eclipse). Contact Chris Mitchell on 0117 963 6847
info@arcturusrising.freeserve.co.uk
SUBMISSIONS TO TRANSIT
All contributions to Transit are welcome. We will publish information about groups, societies and
courses as well as more general news about astrology - and your opinions. If at all possible
please submit your contribution by email to Transit@oakleafcircle.org.
Alternatively contributions may be sent through the post to Transit, The Astrological Association,
Unit 168, Lee Valley Technopark, Tottenham Hale, London N17 9LN, preferably on disc in .txt or
.doc format. Illustrations are appreciated where possible. If sent electronically these should be in
.jpg format. Otherwise please make your contribution as clear and neat as you can.
Copyright of signed articles and correspondence remains with the author, except that the
Astrological Association retains the right to republish the material in full, on one occasion, without
further permission of the author. Any opinions stated are those of the author, not of the Astrological
Association.
Transit aims to publish articles of general and specific interest to all astrologers. It is published bi-
monthly and available free to all members. Contributors are at liberty to express such opinions or
advocate such astrological techniques as they wish. The publication of these does not imply that
they are endorsed by either the editor or the Council.
The deadline for contributions to the May 2004 issue is 21st April 2004, for publication on May
1st. Genuinely urgent or newsworthy items can be accepted at any time up to publication date.

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