A new regal blockbuster and probably bonkbuster series will hit the screens late October with Helen Mirren starring as Catherine The Great, Empress of Russia in a period drama full of “politics, passion and power”. The Sky blurb says the four-part drama “delves into the politically tumultuous and sexually charged court of the most powerful female monarch in history. Catherine wielded supreme power throughout Russia for nearly half of the 18th century – strong-minded, independent, brilliantly intelligent and sexually liberated, she was the definition of the modern woman.”

She came to power following a coup d’état that she organised—resulting in her husband, Peter III, being overthrown and then assassinated. Under her reign, Russia was revitalised, modernised along Western European lines and was recognised as one of the great powers of Europe. As a patron of the arts she presided over the age of the Russian Enlightenment, and promoted the education of women, as well as the highly modern notion of vaccinations for smallpox. She is often regarded as an enlightened despot. Lurid tales of her rampant sex life may or may not be embellished though she was undoubtedly fairly active in that department.

She was born 2 May 1729 (NS) 2.30am Stettin, Germany and was an earthy, indulgent, ruthless and ultra-determined Sun Mars in Taurus. Mars in Taurus can be implacable as well as highly sensual and acquisitive. And her Mars Sun were heavily emphasised being on the focal point of a mini-Grand Trine of Jupiter trine Saturn in Pisces; and most significantly on one leg of a Yod, sextile Saturn inconjunct Pluto. She also had a restless and social-butterfly Moon Venus in Gemini inconjunct Uranus – a lady marked out for a highly individual life of great influence.

A Yod apex Pluto tends to be an extremist, a loner who operates without being distracted by others. Tierney remarks: “This yod can propel one into a high-level authority position, sometimes giving him organizational control over super-structures in society”  – adept at “ushering in a new order of things to come.” Sun, Mars, Pluto, Saturn is also fairly brutal.

Tr Saturn Uranus in Aries were opposing her natal Pluto when her mother-in-law died in 1762 with tr Pluto about to move into Capricorn to square it – and her Solar Arc Saturn was also in opposition to her Pluto – at which point she seized her destiny, despatched her husband, and took over the reins herself. Yods usually wait until they are activated by influences producing fated events, after which the individual pursues their unique destiny.

She’s been played by Helen Mirren 26 July 1945 2am London, an entertaining, controlled and influential Sun Pluto in Leo. The only slight similarity between their charts is they share the light-hearted sociable Venus in Gemini. Though they wouldn’t have got on remotely well in reality since Mirren’s Sun Pluto squares Catherine Mars Sun in Taurus. However Catherine’s Moon Venus falls on Mirren’s Ascendant which would help to create a bond and their relationship chart does have a friendly, affectionate Sun Venus. So she’d understand enough about what made her tick to give a sympathetic portrayal.

PS: I’m not sure where all of Pluto in Capricorn’s enlightened and culturally advanced energy has gone this time round.

The starting pistol has been fired for Canada’s election on 21^st October with all the indications that the country is mired in the same swamp as others – with lacklustre enthusiasm for the candidates on offer and a polarized electorate divided on climate change, immigration, attitudes towards public institutions, worries about trade wars as well as concerns about public health with a raging opioid epidemic.

Justin Trudeau is asking for another four year term and is opposed by conservative Andrew Scheer.

Trudeau, 25 December 1971 9.27pm Ottawa, has an outrageously emphasised Capricorn Sun on the cusp of his attention-grabbing 5^th which squares onto an do-or-die-determined Pluto opposition Mars. His butter-wouldn’t-melt good looks belie a backbone of pure titanium. He does have a talented chart with an Air Grand Trine of Pluto trine Saturn trine Venus, formed into two Kites with Pluto leading on one edge and Neptune on the other.

He is exactly on his Jupiter Return on election day which is positive though that can be a mild influence; with an emotional tr Uranus square his Venus from mid November. And (birth time being absolutely accurate) a worrisome tr Neptune square his Mars/Ascendant which is usually not good news for elections till mid November

Andrew Scheer, 20 May 1979 8.25 am Ottawa is a late Sun Taurus, with a passionately enthusiastic Venus Mars conjunct as well as Mercury all in Taurus. If his birth time is accurate to the minute then he has tr Neptune conjunct his MC over the election which is not supportive of career ambitions; and tr Saturn will be in a stuck square to his Pluto from early November. Tr Uranus will conjunct his Mars and square his Jupiter from mid November which looks like an upset and a lucky break all at once.

Canada, 1 July 1867, like the USA and UK, Germany and the EU is being pummelled by this year’s Eclipses, especially the July Cancer Solar one, bringing crises and a sense that changes must be pushed through.

The Bank of Canada chart, 11 March 1935, does indicate heavy pressures through this year and next with tr Pluto square the Mars and opposition the Pluto and tugging on the Uranus; with an especially stressed phase in 2021/22/23 as the Solar Arc Uranus will conjunct the Pluto and square the Mars, with tr Pluto aiming for a disruptive square to the Uranus by 2023/24.

That will coincide with the time period of two or three years when tr Uranus will conjunct the Canada Pluto and then oppose the Saturn for a significant upheaval.

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Rudy Giuliani, former Mayor of New York and hero of 9/11, one-time Presidential candidate, now  Trump’s personal attorney is embroiled in what is proving to be a messy and rancorous divorce from his third wife. Instead of settling details in private there’s now a trial date set for next January with public brickbats being aimed from both sides. She accuses him of trying to renege on the finances while his allies insist she was jealous and damaged his friendships.

He was born 28 May 1944 at 2.30pm (from memory) New York and is a changeable Sun Uranus in Gemini conjunct Venus in final degree Taurus trine Neptune and sextile a ruthlessly ambitious Mars Pluto in Leo. He’s do-or-die-determined and not the most tolerant of individuals. His Moon is in flamboyant, five-star-lifestyle Leo conjunct Jupiter – so he likes living high. His worldwide speaking engagements turned him into a global brand and that along with his lucrative law practice amassed millions of dollars and six homes.

His third wife Judith Nathan,16 December 1954, was a registered nurse/medical salesperson and is also on her third marriage. She’s an enthusiastic and determined Sagittarius Sun trine Pluto, sextile Neptune; with a steely Venus Saturn in Scorpio in an unyielding square to Pluto; and an innovative Jupiter Uranus in Cancer.

It was always an odd match with her Sun opposition his Saturn; her Mars in an explosive and argumentative square to his Uranus Sun; and her Saturn square his Moon Jupiter.

The relationship chart has a toxic, power-struggling composite Mars square Pluto – and those relationships always end in  long-drawn-out bitterness. There’s also a composite Venus square Mars which would produce a few sparks of passion initially as would Venus conjunct Pluto but ultimately the flames turned destructive.

He’s looking considerably rattled until tr Uranus clears the square to his Mars Pluto which will take him through till February 2021 – though that won’t all be his divorce causing ructions. He’s not looking happy in the aftermath of the November election with a loss-making tr Pluto opposition his Jupiter/Saturn midpoint and very jangled indeed over the Inauguration with the tr Uranus Mars in Taurus square his Pluto and tr Saturn in a setback square to his Mars.

Jennifer Lopez is roaring back onto top acting form with a knock-out performance in Hustlers as the queen of a New York strip club frequented by stock traders flashing the cash. It’s based on a real-life gang of exotic dancers who fleeced the Wall Street clients who had wronged them after the financial collapse. Reviews have been enthusiastic with thoughts of a possible Oscar nomination for her performance.

Born 24 July 1969 in New York with an unverified time of 1pm, she’s an entertaining Sun Mercury in Leo in a feisty trine to Mars in Sagittarius, sextiling onto an adventurous and lucky Jupiter Uranus in Libra. Her Sun Mercury are also in a serious square to Saturn in Taurus. Her Moon is Scorpio/Sagittarius and possibly conjunct Neptune and/or Mars. Her Venus in light-hearted Gemini squares onto an intense and seductive Pluto.

She is an extraordinarily successful singer, regarded as the most influential Latin performer in the USA.

Her love life has been complicated and fast moving with three relatively short marriages and high-profile liaisons with Ben Affleck amongst others. Her current fiancée former NY Yankees baseball player Alex Rodriguez is due to walk her up the aisle soon. If her birth time is accurate then her Uranus Jupiter are conjunct her Sun/Moon midpoint, the marriage significator, so no surprises she moves on fairly quickly and her commitment levels tend to be easily disrupted.

Rodriguez, 27 July 1975, is also a Sun Leo trine Neptune in Sagittarius and sextile Pluto – he’s not short of ambition. He’s also got a lucky, adventurous Uranus opposition Jupiter in Aries. They are relatively similar which isn’t always a good thing when both have attention-grabbing Leo Suns. But their relationship chart has an affectionate composite Sun, Mercury Venus conjunction trine Neptune and sextile Pluto which will stand them in good stead. But there’s also Saturn trine Uranus widely trine Mars so there will be rough edges. He’s also had a fairly tumultuous romantic life with multiple changes.

There’ll be a few dips before the end of this year between them and a few more next as tr Neptune squares the composite Saturn and tr Saturn opposes the Venus and then Mercury and Sun. High pressure marriages between showbiz and sport superstars face more problems than most.

Renee Zellweger, best known as the bubbly air-head Bridget Jones has taken on a more tortured role as Judy Garland, the haunted and hugely talented American singer, dancer, actress who battled addiction and died of an overdose in her late 40s. The film Judy has been getting standing ovations at the Toronto Film Festival and warm reviews. Renee’s comment about Garland that there was “no room on the schedule for her sanity” is all the more poignant since she herself disappeared at the height of her fame in 2010 for an extended break to find space for herself away from fame.

Renee was born 25 April 1969 2.41 pm Baytown, Texas, and does not have an easy chart with an 8^th house Taurus Sun conjunct a forced-to-be-self-reliant Saturn in last degree Aries, with an intense Venus in Aries also in the 8^th trine a heated 4^th house Mars in Sagittarius and trine her Leo Moon in the hidden 12th. Mars in turn is in an intense, frustrating square to Pluto with Pluto in a confident conjunction to Jupiter. Emotionally and domestically not a recipe for a calm, committed romantic life. She was engaged to Jim Carrey, married very briefly to a musician and had other passing relationships.

Her early fame came with Jerry Maguire, and then Bridget Jones’s Diary attracting a stream of awards and nominations and the much-praised Cold Mountain in 2003.

Judy Garland, born 10 June 1922 6 am Minnesota, was a Sun Gemini opposition Mars in Sagittarius and widely opposition the Moon in Sagittarius which in turn opposed Mercury and squared a downbeat Saturn in her 4^th. She had a maverick Uranus in Pisces on her Midheaven square Mars and trine Pluto and Venus in Cancer – so she’d be prone to outbursts, mood fluctuations and nervous tension. She was a child star with the stage mother from hell and was put on prescription drugs early on to keep her weight down, and uppers and downers to cope with an exhausting movie schedule.

Their charts are not that similar though they share Mars in Sagittarius but there are enough emotional hard edges in both to give Renee an understanding of Judy’s anguished and fragile mental state.

Judy’s Sun falls in Renee’s 10^th so she’ll be a significant career influence on her with critics talking of possible Oscar nominations. She’s looking fairly agitated in the next few months but fairly upbeat at Oscars time in February, so she might be in with a chance.

In cinemas from late September.

There will be few tears shed as uber hawk John Bolton is trash-canned as Trump’s National Security Adviser. Bolton says he resigned and Trump says he fired him – watch this space since Bolton is not known for his discretion. The recent Taliban Camp David peace talk debacle appears to have been the final straw after a run of disagreements over Trump’s non-interventionist, placatory policies towards North Korea, Russia and Iran.

It was never going to be an easy mix with Bolton’s Scorpio Sun in an argumentative square to Trump’s Mars; and Bolton’s explosive and volatile Mars in Sagittarius opposition Uranus falling across Trump’s Moon and Sun.

Their relationship chart has a friendly enough composite Sun, Venus, Mercury conjunction; but also a disruptive, Mars trine Uranus. There’s nothing much, without Bolton’s birth time, affecting the relationship chart so it must be hitting the axis.

Bolton’s Term chart in the job always did look over stressed and prone to self-destruct with a composite Saturn Mars and Mars conjunct Pluto square the Sun and trine Venus – it was never going to be peace and harmony.

What is obvious from the astrology is that Trump’s relationship with Mike Pompeo, Secretary of Defence, will go into an even more unstable phase than Trump/Bolton from late this December and through 2020 as tr Uranus returns to conjunct the composite Venus and then conjunct Saturn and oppose Mars just before mid 2020 onwards. That looks like serious rock n’ roll time, perhaps exacerbated by outside events. Iran and Russia look to be Pompeo hot spots.

John Bercow has announced he is standing down from his position as Speaker of the House of Commons (before he is pushed) after a decade which has seen him move from political right to being seen as a scourge of the Brexiteer Tories. Though the role is supposed to be impartial. He will preside over the most contentious two weeks in Westminster history in living memory from the Queen’s Speech on October 14^th to Boris’s do-or-die-in-a-ditch October 31^st EU exit date. He has been accused on having a bullying manner by MPs and by his own staff.

Born 19 January 1963 he is a late degree Sun Capricorn; with a pushily-confident Jupiter opposition Pluto square Venus in Sagittarius – he can turn on the charm and does like to party but he can also be power-hungry. He also has a bad-tempered and hard Mars in flamboyant Leo opposition Saturn square an elusive, slippery Neptune (Moon) in Scorpio.

His Speaker’s chart, 22 June 2009, indicated he would be a controlling Speaker and divisive with Sun (Moon) opposition Pluto square Uranus. Plus a drama and argument-filled Venus Mars in Taurus trine Saturn. It was never going to be a peaceful run with rolling crises from Uranus square Pluto and emotional intensity from Venus Mars in Taurus.

Bercow’s relationship with Boris is under a dark cloud from mid August to late October with tr Saturn square the composite Sun Jupiter, which also tugs on the composite Mars. So there won’t be a rapprochement before he goes with some talk of the usual transition of the outgoing Speaker to the House of Lords being blocked.

Just a quickie since it turned up in Peaky Blinders and is a sterling example of Mars Venus. Oswald Mosley, the British fascist leader, took Lady Cynthia Curzon as his first wife in 1920 and embarked on a long affair with two of her sisters and her stepmother as well as other women. One of the sisters was also involved sexually with Prince George, Duke of Kent (see post below). Mosley went on, after Cynthia’s death, to marry one of the Mitford sisters in Germany in 1936 at Goebbels’ residence with Hitler as guest of honour. Mosley spent most of WW11 in prison as his party was banned.

Born 16 November 1896, he was a Sun, Saturn, Uranus in Scorpio – undoubtedly innovative, obsessive, stubborn to the nth degree, not a man for turning. His Moon was in Aries. And his Venus in Sagittarius was in an exact opposition to Mars in Gemini. Scorpio is always sexual even damped down by Saturn which can turn to perversion in certain cases. Plus the Venus Mars which Ebertin describes as ‘a disharmonious sex life, in some cases inclination to polygamy, infidelity.’

His son, Max Mosley, 13 April 1940, who has been involved in extensive litigation over media and internet exposure of his sex life – so one treads lightly – has a Venus Mars conjunction in Gemini.