Feature image: A Visit to Aesculapius 1880 Sir Edward Poynter 1836-1919 Aesculapius is identified by the snake curled around a staff. In a scene taken from a poem by the Elizabethan Thomas Watson, Poynter shows him being consulted by Venus who has a thorn in her foot. Venus is identified by the doves, which are... Continue Reading →
Here is the birth chart of British austerity, as announced by David Cameron in Cheltenham in April 2009. The chart contains several outstanding markers for difficulty.
Theoretical wisdom (an oxymoron if ever there were one) tells the astrologer that there is nothing as fortunate in all of astrology as the grand trine. If I had a dollar for every message board missive I’d read proclaiming one’s great good fortune at being the recipient of such a favoured configuration then I would... Continue Reading →
Today I would like to revisit the theme of relationship astrology, and explore another method of determining compatibility between two individuals by the analysis of their astrological combination. Typically this is achieved through synastry: the application of one nativity to another wherein the aspects between each party's placements are studied. Of course, even before any... Continue Reading →
As a work that is traditionally hailed as being antithetic to male comfort, I find that Germaine Greer's "Female Eunuch" probably says more about the negative stereotyping of women by women than it does about men. Of course, she argues (throughout her writing) that this is merely the extension of a patriarchal tyranny, that culturally... Continue Reading →
The Grand Trine: even the moniker creates a regal ambience; if you could buy and sell aspect patterns on Ebay then there's little doubt that the beautifully equilateral one would conjure as much interest as any possible configuration, excepting possibly the Golden Yod (which everyone in the know would want but would have no clue... Continue Reading →
I recently watched Sean Penn's magnificent biographical drama of the life of Chris McCandless, described as an American wanderer who quite literally went "into the wild" to try and answer some inner impetus. I found the film to be profoundly moving (I don't care, I cried - a lot!) and I cannot recommend it highly... Continue Reading →
Rhona Cameron is a relatively little known comedienne, certainly beyond Britain's shores; I must confess that I am not especially familiar with her work, although I have seen a few snippets of her on television from time to time and I must say that I like her style. That's about as much as I can... Continue Reading →
Here's a good question to ask all your hip café-crowd real-world friends next time you're congregating for lattés and croissants down the King's Road: what do Jimmy Page, Annie Lennox and Carole King all have in common? Now the appeal of this question is that everyone is going to have an answer; they're all iconic... Continue Reading →
