The shock death of young music entrepreneur Jamal Edwards at 31 has brought a flood of tributes. He was still a teenager when he launched the youth broadcasting and production film channel SBTV to upload clips he had recorded of his friends performing on the estate where he lived in Acton, west London, which later helped launch the careers of Ed Sheeran, Jessie J and Stormzy. He was an ambassador for the Prince’s Trust, a charity headed by the Prince of Wales, and in 2014 he was awarded an MBE for his services to music. He was also a director, author, DJ and designer, and undertook extensive philanthropic work, including in mental health and the funding of youth centres when he became a success.
He was born 24 August 1990 in Luton, England, no time sadly, and had a Virgo Sun conjunct Regulus and the highly-strung and talented triple stellium in Capricorn of Saturn, Neptune and Uranus. He also had Mars conjunct Algol in Taurus which has just been labouring under the tr Pluto trine; and a Fixed T Square of Venus in Leo opposition North Node in Aquarius square Pluto. Pluto brings influence, can be ahead of its time in a T square, piles on the charm in aspect to Venus and the North Node gave him a mission in life. His Earth Grand Trine of Mercury trine Mars trine Saturn gave him practical and business skills and discipline.
The only cause of death was a ‘sudden illness’ and the day before he was DJ-ing.
All the problems and potential for chaos of the Uranus Pluto conjunction in Virgo opposition Saturn plus Mars in Scorpio are laid bare in the raucous and tumultuous life of Abby Lee Miller. Her eight-season reality show Dance Moms featured children she tutored for a showbiz career along with their bickering stage mothers, with a violent and combative atmosphere being actively encouraged. She was then given prison time for financial fraud and declared bankrupt with a whopping IRS bill unpaid in 2016. Once out of prison she was diagnosed with cancer in 2018 and after a spinal operation ended up in a wheelchair, with therapy ongoing to get her back on her feet. Allegations of past racist comments and discriminatory behaviour led to possible shows being cancelled in 2020. Though last year she appeared to be punting other possibilities.
She was born 21 September 1965, no birth time, with a Virgo Sun and Mercury; with her Mercury in an intense, can-be-domineering and outspoken conjunction to Pluto Uranus and all three Virgo planets sextile a hard Mars Neptune in Scorpio. That echoes the chart of Dmitry Medvedev, Putin’s Russian political sidekick and Bashar Assad of Syria, so she does have a vengeful streak. Her Saturn in Pisces is trine Venus in Scorpio as well as Neptune Mars adding an aggravated edge. Plus a bull-in-a-china-shop Gemini North Node.
When Miller’s life started to hit the skids, her Virgo Sun had moved by Solar Arc to conjunct her Neptune in Scorpio and her other Virgo planets were following along behind for an exceptionally bumpy few years which isn’t over yet. And won’t be for a good long while ahead. There’ll be a stalemate with unpopularity in 2023, flaming arguments two years on, and into a complete swamp by 2026.
Usually when two stelliums or configurations of planets in a chart coincide by Solar Arc it flags up a life-changing crisis running over several or many years depending on the planets.
It’s not that 1965 did not produce some notables with the same Uranus Pluto Saturn – amongst them Shania Twain, Cheryl Hines (also September 21), Charlie Sheen, Sam Mendes, Jeremy Kyle and JK Rowling, but along with talent tends to go a roller-coaster temperament and life.
What an unutterably ghastly woman. I pray we are moving out of the era of scream TV and turgid reality shows.
Satirist and journalist P.J. O’Rourke, regarded “one of the major voices of his generation”, has died. He was, unusually for a scurrilous wit, right wing but with no compunction about causing offence even to his own side, as he sought out political irony, absurdity and hypocrisy. He was a Republican who mocked Republicans. “The Republicans are the party that says government doesn’t work,” he wrote, “and then they get elected and prove it.”
Like many with an acerbic turn of mind, he had a difficult, high-tension, frustrated and angry chart. He was born 14 November 1947 in Toledo, Ohio, sadly with no birth time, into what he described as “a family so normal as to be almost a statistical anomaly”, with a housewife mother and car salesman father. He joked that he was the eldest of 2.5 children since “my sisters are identical twins and no one noticed they had separate identities until they married different men”.
His Scorpio Sun was in a heavy-duty square to Mars, Saturn and Pluto in attention-seeking Leo. However normal he thought his childhood, he must have felt singled out for mistreatment by life if not by his father. His Mercury was also in Scorpio, a sign renowned for its ability to cut through to the core. What lifted him out of the glooms and gave him a comedians’ quirky take were three planets in Sagittarius – Jupiter, Venus and his Moon.
There was no situation so bleak he couldn’t find the humour. His best book was reputed to be Holidays From Hell, written from war zones.
“Wherever there’s injustice, oppression and suffering, America will show up six months late and bomb the country next to where it’s happening.”
Though his Parliament of Whores about US politics also became a favourite. “Although this is a conservative book,” O’Rourke explained in the opening pages, “it is not informed by any very elaborate political theory. I have only one firm belief about the American political system, and that is this: God is a Republican and Santa Claus is a Democrat.”
He wrote for National Lampoon and Rolling Stone and latterly for more serious outlets – and always with a knack for a devastating one-liner. He described Rush Limbaugh’s echo-chamber fans as “ditto heads.”
In his 2016 book of election coverage How the Hell Did This Happen? he endorsed Hillary Clinton, despite the fact that he thought “she’s wrong about absolutely everything, but she’s wrong within normal parameters”. He thought Trump was unstable.
Some of his other bon mots.
On Europe: “I’ve had it with these dopey little countries and all their poky borders. You can’t swing a cat without sending it through customs.”
In his 1983 book Modern Manners, he argued that traditionalists should encourage the young to do drugs because drugs had “taught an entire generation of English kids the metric system”.
“Every kitchen should be equipped with a dishwasher, preferably a cute one wearing her apron and nothing else”.
“In general, life is better than it ever has been, and if you think that, in the past, there was some golden age of pleasure and plenty to which you would, if you were able, transport yourself, let me say one single word: ‘dentistry’.”
On a more serious note in 1988 he wrote:- “We are fools when we fail to defend civilisation. So-called Western civilisation, as practised in half of Europe, some of Asia and a few parts of North America, is better than anything else available. Western civilisation not only provides a bit of life, a pinch of liberty and the occasional pursuance of happiness, it’s also the only thing that’s ever tried to. Our civilisation is the first in history to show even the slightest concern for average, undistinguished, none-too-commendable people like us.”
Charlie Chaplin, the Little Tramp, sometimes the Great Dictator, with the questionable sex life, is the focus of yet another film. The Real Charlie Chaplin sets out to lay bare his private life, with four of his children with his final wife Oona O’Neill sharing their experiences of him.
Born probably 16 April 1889 with an unregistered birth in London, he started life in dire poverty and the workhouse, vaudevilled his way to the US to become ultimately the inventor of cinema, celebrity and modernity. His success made him a target of the red-scare conspiracists in power in the American 1940s/50s and he eventually upped sticks for Switzerland where he remained with his fourth wife Oona O’Neill.
He is alleged to have slept with over 2,000 women, and had a penchant for underage girls.
His son Michael says in the documentary: ‘I was kind of frightened of my father. He was so powerful, you couldn’t argue with him, because he couldn’t be wrong.’
Assuming his birth date is about accurate, he had a late Aries Sun with with a high-enthusiasm, not always sensitive, passionate Venus Mars in Taurus. This he shares with Adolf Hitler born four days later. In Chaplin’s case, his Mars Venus opposed an intense Scorpio Moon squaring onto wannabe-important Saturn in Leo. He didn’t share easily, for sure. His Sun was in a maverick opposition to Uranus. If his birth time is accurate, then his Uranus fell in his creative 12th and even more significantly his Neptune Pluto in Gemini, the emblem of his generation, fell in is 8th – as was also the case with Hitler and Winston Churchill. Both Pluto and Neptune in the 8th have an ability to project an aura out into the zeitgeist for the few who can utilise the energy. Though it does not make for an easy temperament or contentment.
Oona O’Neill, his fourth and final wife who was 18 when he married her and 36 years younger than him, was born 14 May 1925, and was a Sun Taurus which sat close to his Venus Mars for a firecracker attraction. Her Venus in Taurus was conjunct his Neptune Pluto as well so she’d be drawn like a moth to a flame by the image and the power he projected. Though her creative/neurotic and obsessional Aquarius Moon opposition Neptune square Saturn in Scorpio clashed uncomfortably with his Scorpio Moon and Venus Mars and Saturn so it was not an easy match.
Michael Chaplin, 6 March 1946 10.25 pm Santa Monica, CA, did find his father scary and tricky with his Pisces Sun and Venus square Uranus and trine a Saturn Mars conjunction so the relationship would feel unfair.
Geraldine Chaplin, 31 July 1944 11.14 pm Santa Monica, also experienced their childhood home as a tense, potentially dread-filled place with a controlling-father Sun Pluto in Leo in her 4th.
Josephine Chaplin, 28 March 1949 12.10 am Santa Monica, has her Aries Sun conjunct Mars Venus in Aries on one side and trine an 8th house Pluto on the other – trapped by heated emotional undercurrents.
Creative talent and the ability to change the world does not go along with a peaceful, harmonious family life or a balanced temperament.
The indomitable Joan Collins sashayed through a glittering celebration of her 88th birthday and 20th wedding anniversary last night at Claridge’s in London surrounded by showbiz friends in full regalia. In an event-filled life she’s been married five times, mainly short-lived and ending badly, with one notable fling with Warren Beatty before settling with Hollywood producer Percy Gibson in 2002, who is more than thirty years her junior. She’s had a long on-screen career since her late teens, is known best for Dynasty and is still appearing on TV and in independent films.
She was born 23 May 1933 at maybe 3am London and he 14 October 1965 7.12pm Abancay, Peru (birth certificate).
Her social butterfly Sun Venus in Gemini are good with his Gemini Moon and his Libra Sun, which may sit in her 7th house of one-to-one relationships. Her Sun Venus also oppose his passionate Venus Mars in Sagittarius for a crackle of passion, affection and fun. There are other less easy cross-overs with her Uranus opposition his Sun and her Pluto square his Sun, which will make her an unpredictable match. But since he is of the Uranus Pluto conjunction generation of the 1960s it may be a turbulent energy he is acclimatised to. His Saturn in Pisces is also opposition her Neptune Mars which will be scratchy and confused at times; and her Taurus Moon square Saturn in Aquarius catches his Neptune awkwardly – she’ll be down to earth where he may be more evasive.
Her Sun Venus are also conjunct his North Node for a ‘fated’ connection or one that feels ‘meant’ and will lead to his development. Her Saturn falls in his career 10th so it will make for a good working partnership or a marriage where career matters take precedence. She will make him better organised.
Their relationship chart has a composite Sun conjunct a lucky, supportive Jupiter on one side and a possessive Pluto on the other; with Pluto in a wide welded-together opposition to Saturn which in turn is trine Mars. So mainly pluses from that with a scratchy minus from the control factor.
It won’t all have been the cakewalk of seamless bliss it appears in HELLO magazine. He has a focal point Gemini Moon onto a Uranus Pluto opposition Saturn so will be emotionally changeable, at times hyper-sensitive, inclined to avoid handling relationship conflict – and his Neptune in the 7th hints at a tendency to shy away from deep commitment. But they may be similar in that regard and maturing years plus long experience of troubled relationships on her side may have ironed out a few wrinkles.
Peter Thiel, a German-American billionaire, co-founder of PayPal and first outside investor in Facebook, is combining his right-wing political activism with his tech talents. He is behind a new conservative ‘Dating app’, about to launch which sounds remarkably like an echo chamber for those who dislike the censorship of politically motivated misinformation.
He has been backing Republican candidates who traffic in Trump conspiracy theories and see themselves as rebels determined to overthrow the Republican establishment and even the broader American political order. In 2009 he wrote in an essay, “I no longer believe that freedom and democracy are compatible.”
A commentator cautioned: “When you have a funder who is actively elevating candidates who are denying the legitimacy of elections, that is a direct assault on the foundation of democracy.”
Thiel was born in Germany on 11 October 1967, no birth time, and had an itinerant childhood, with his parents moving to the USA when he was one, and thence to South Africa and Namibia and back to the US. He excelled in maths, graduated law and then fell into Silicon Valley.
He’s a Sun Libra opposition Saturn in forced-to-be-self-reliant Aries; with a Mars in Sagittarius in a ruthless, tough-minded and no-compromise square to Pluto Uranus and trine Jupiter in flamboyant Leo. He’s clearly a risk-taker. His Jupiter is also in a high-finance, not-always-realistic square to Neptune. His Moon is Capricorn or Aquarius.
His control-freak, ferocious Mars square Pluto (Uranus) clashes with the USA’s free-thinking Mars in Gemini square Neptune, so he will be an uncomfortable presence, trying to strong-arm public opinion.
His relationship to Trump isn’t oddly enough too cosy either with Trump’s Gemini Sun opposition Sagittarius Moon also colliding with Thiel’s Mars square Pluto Uranus. And it looks to be on a disappointing slide through this year with various upsets which continue into 2023.
On Thiel’s personal chart he’s been undermined through January/early February this year; will be emotionally revved up March to June and again on and off till late 2023; with a few hitches glitches and catastrophes late April/early May this year. 2023/2024 sees tr Pluto conjunct his Saturn/Neptune midpoint so he’ll be devastated, depressed, perhaps with health issues.
He looks marginally unsettled by the 2022 Mid Terms; and so-so over the 2024 elections with a few minor Jupiterian ups. But he looks as if he could be a force to be reckoned – in the awkward squad – through 2025/26.
Maybe he’s a manifestation of the darker energies in the USA Pluto Return. Power is good, as long as I have it; people-power is bad. The swan song (hopefully) of Pluto in Capricorn.
Prince Andrew appears to have reached a settlement with Virginia Giuffre, on the eve of the court case, estimated to be over £10 million, without admitting much apart from regret at his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein. Legal experts say it would have cost him more money to avoid having to confess to meeting her which he has always denied. His sanctimonious pledge to help the victims of sex trafficking in future were reckoned to be a desperate attempt to keep a door open for a return to public life down the line. ???
What was always mystifying about his astrology was the sprinkling of Jupiter around – a lucky break tr Uranus opposition to a Jupiter midpoint now till mid March; a Solar Arc Jupiter conjunct his 7th house Sun, exact within weeks; and a go-ahead and usually successful tr Pluto conjunct his Sun/Jupiter midpoint from early 2023 to late 2024 which will super-charge his confidence. In his deluded state he may feel he has escaped jeopardy.
That’s on the upside. On the downside – tr Pluto is in a frustrating, scary, trapped conjunction to his Mars this month and then his Venus, which will ramp up his emotional reactions – rage, jealousy, envy – on and off till late 2023. Given they sit in his 6th house, it could also have health implications, especially with his Solar Arc Moon moving to conjunct his Mars, exact within weeks, which can bring a shock, and then conjunct his Venus in 2023.
Plus his Progressed Moon is moving through his 8th house from a few months back and running on till August 2023 which is deep, a time of inner conflict, and can offer the chance of transformation through suffering. His Solar Arc Saturn is also moving through his 8th about to conjunct his hidden Mercury, exact within 7 months which could drag more murk into the open, perhaps financial, since there are questions over his money-laundering Kazakh buddies and how he supports a lavish lifestyle on minimal income at the moment.
He’s also got a stressed and bad tempered April this year; followed by calamities late May to mid June, November and March 2023 as tr Uranus opposes his Mars/Pluto midpoint. Then tr Saturn in Pisces will conjunct his Sun and oppose his Pluto throughout 2023 which will be sobering.
His future depends largely on Prince Charles and William, once he loses his mother’s protection. His relationship with Charles, never good at the best of times, has been jolted and jarred since late 2021, as he lost his final titles and patronages, right through till early April as their composite Moon square Saturn is being pounded by the tr Uranus square tr Saturn. There may be tense discussions about how much visibility he will have at Prince Philip’s memorial and the Queen’s Jubilee. Their relationship will remain wreathed in fog through this year.
But it is William he has to watch out for. With his brother Charles there has always been a competitive irritation and emotional chill. But his nephew seriously dislikes him and that will become a major obstacle to any re-emergence. Their relationship chart has tr Pluto square the composite Sun in 2023/24 with worse to follow. There is a Yod in their relationship chart of Mars Neptune sextile Pluto inconjunct Sun Mercury, so it may be that William has a clear eye as to how his own destiny could be knocked off track by the antics of his rancid uncle.
Sarah Ferguson, 15 October 1959 9.03 am London, is also looking strangely relieved in the near future. Though her prospects look anything but rosy in particular on the financial front in coming years. Andrew in the past has baled her out but that may no longer be possible as the purse strings tighten for him and her profligate spending and incompetent financial management land her in more trouble.
Virginia Giuffre, who had indicated through her lawyer that she would accept a settlement only if he admitted guilt, may assume that a large enough sum handed to herself and to sexual abuse charities is vindication enough. But for all that she is not looking too happy. Tr Pluto is in a frustrated and trapped opposition to her Mars this month and on and off till late 2023, with tr Pluto also square her Pluto Saturn which is change under extreme stress. She also has a disruptive tr Uranus square her Leo Sun from late May on and off into early 2023. Tr Jupiter through her 8th will help, bringing money her way at the moment; as well as a sense of leaving the past behind. A trial would have been a punishing ordeal for her.
More will emerge on this in coming days. One question being raised is about justice for the rich – they can buy their way out of admissions by paying out vast sums. The other is who paid? – provoking questions by Republicans about the Queen’s wealth.
Long lasting does not always equate to contentment when it comes to marriages and iconic Hollywood pairings, even more than most, can hide private torment behind a red carpet smile. Though a few slide through to be exceptions to the rule.
Tom Hanks is reputed to have a stable, happy bond with his wife of 33 years Rita Wilson. He’s a Sun Cancer which chimes well with her Scorpio Sun mellowed by Neptune. Both have emotionally changeable Moon Uranus in Leo, so like a varied domestic life and money. His charming Venus in Gemini on his midheaven which falls in her relationship 7th house fits well with her Venus Jupiter in Virgo on her midheaven, which falls in his 1st house – both of them are good at public relations. His Jupiter is conjunct her Pluto which is good for joint enthusiasm and influence.
She’s not that easy a personality with a Scorpio Sun Neptune square Uranus Moon. But what will make a difference is a composite Sun Jupiter conjunction in their relationship chart squaring onto the Nodes. In relationships Jupiter smooths round rough edges, gives hope through the rougher patches and is mutually supportive. Saturn which brings longevity and the ability to endure together in their case comes from the composite Saturn square Pluto Mercury.
Goldie Hawn’s near 40 year marriage to Kurt Russell is another listed as rock solid. She’s not an easy temperament with a Scorpio Sun trine Saturn and Mars Pluto in the 8th. But he’s an adaptable Sun Jupiter in Pisces which will help – and both have lucky Jupiter in their 10th so successful careers will have helped to keep their bond afloat. The relationship chart does have an affectionate composite Sun Venus and good communication from a Grand Trine of composite Mercury to Neptune and Mars, focused onto Pluto – so the ties that bind are strong. There is also a composite Yod, as seems to be a pattern in many high-profile iconic matches, of Uranus sextile Saturn inconjunct Sun.
The renowned Hollywood match to stand the test of time – Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward – had the classic crossover of his Pisces Moon close to her Pisces Sun and his Sun in Aquarius sharing a resonance with her Aquarius Moon though not conjunct. Their relationship chart had a composite Yod of Saturn sextile Venus inconjunct Pluto; as well as a composite New Moon (= more whole when together); and an upbeat composite Mars Jupiter.
Another composite Yod onto Pluto is in the relationship chart of Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. Though it was a stormier affair with a composite Venus square Mars Uranus. Bacall’s Virgo Sun was square his creative/neurotic Neptune opposition Saturn and her Pluto was opposition his Mars (Sun) in Capricorn.
Yods point to a synergy between the couple which irrevocably – and sometimes surprisingly – changes the course of each of their lives in a radical way, which would otherwise not have happened.
Liz Taylor and Richard Burton’s tempestuous and impossible on-off relationship – she Pisces with a Scorpio Moon and he Sun Saturn in Scorpio with a Virgo Moon – had a composite Yod of Jupiter sextile Neptune inconjunct Uranus. It also had an explosive, gritty, unfair-treatment composite Saturn Mars conjunction with Mars in a no-compromise square to Uranus.
Queen Elizabeth’s relationship chart with Prince Philip – she Taurus with a Leo Moon and he Gemini with a Leo Moon – had a Yod onto Uranus from Saturn sextile Neptune and an unfair/one-sided composite Saturn opposition Mars. In normal circumstances it would probably not have survived but given the Royal stricture against divorced, they soldiered on – with separate lives at points. Oddly enough Gunter Sachs study of best relationship sign matches found Taurus/Gemini to be one of the longer lasting for marriages – not what you’d think. But an adaptable with a fixed sign probably helps.
Queen Victoria and Prince Albert – she New Moon in Gemini and he Virgo Sun Scorpio Moon – also had a composite Yod in their relationship chart onto Uranus from Sun sextile Mars.
Prince Charles and Diana has – not surprisingly – a composite Yod in their relationship chart – of Pluto sextile Neptune Mars inconjunct Moon, with Neptune Mars in a disruptive square to Uranus.
Yods don’t always – clearly – bring marital bliss but they have a fated quality of affecting the destiny of each in a profound way.
Add On: Another high profile example is Winston and Clementine Churchill who had a 57 year marriage, not always easy, hence her – ‘divorce never, murder frequently’ comment. He was a Sun and Venus in Sagittarius with Moon and Uranus in Leo. She was a Sun, Venus, Mars in Aries opposition Uranus with her Aries planets falling in his 7th house of partnership. A fiery match especially given her Uranus sitting on his Ascendant but they would resonate and she would appreciate adventure and excitement – and also demand space. Her Jupiter in Leo was conjunct his Moon and her Moon was either late Libra, maybe conjunct his Jupiter, or in early Scorpio – both of which would smooth out a few wrinkles. The synastry is noisy but not bad at all.
Their relationship chart had an Earthy Grand Trine of Uranus to Neptune to Mars which would help. Plus a power-couple, enthusiastic and supportive Jupiter trine Pluto, maybe involving the Moon. A one-sided, unfair-treatment Mars square Saturn – and he was undoubtedly egregiously self-absorbed. Plus an idealistic/disappointing Sun Venus square Neptune.
Nowadays it might not have made it through the rough patches since it could have burnt out with too much Fire, but separating was not done lightly back then.
Showbiz marriages are rarely what they appear with a Grand Canyon of a gulf between the public image and the private reality. A case in point being Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz who starred in the phenomenally successful 1950s sit-com I Love Lucy as a happily hitched couple. Off screen it was a tempestuous affair with his drinking, gambling and infidelity taking its toll on suburban bliss.
Together they launched and ran what became the most successful sit-com of all time with 40 million viewers and a long shelf-life after it stopped production. But the snap crackle and pop that made it happen became too much and they divorced as the show ended. Both went on to remarry but stayed friends.
Being the Ricardos, a recently released Amazon Prime movie, tells the tale of one turbulent week when the show was running.
Lucille Ball was born 6 August 1911 at 5pm Jamestown, New York, with a messed-up childhood, her father dying when she was three and partly brought up by austere grandparents. She started her career modelling, went into B movies and married Cuban bandleader Desi Arnaz, six years her junior when she was 29. A decade later when her radio show “My Favorite Husband” made the transition to TV, she insisted that Desi be cast as her spouse, considering that they might salvage their marriage if he was working locally, rather than constantly touring with his band.
He was born 2 March 1917 12.30pm (unverified) Santiago, Cuba.
Lucille had an intense 8th house Leo Sun, a lucky 10th house Jupiter in money-magnet Scorpio and a 5th house Saturn which all pointed her towards an executive role in the business, running the Desilu studio and other later shows, including Star Trek. Her Sun was square Mars and Saturn in Taurus so she would be tough – and short-tempered; and she also had the generational highly-strung and can-be-fanatical Uranus opposition Neptune. She had her Capricorn Moon on her Ascendant in a possessive opposition to Pluto on the cusp of her 7th – so stormy relationships were hardly a surprise.
He was a fiery and creative Sun Mars in Pisces widely trine Pluto and Moon in Cancer – so given to emotional extremes himself. His Uranus in a constantly-wandering conjunction to his Venus was opposition her Sun; and worse his Saturn was conjunct her Neptune and opposition her Uranus which would give rise to doubt, suspicion and constant uncertainty; with his Sun Mars in an argumentative opposition to her Mercury.
One key to their success may have come from his Jupiter in Taurus conjunct Lucille’s North Node.
Their relationship chart does have a charming, lucky composite Venus trine Mars, sextile Jupiter Uranus. But surprisingly little else.
