Neil Woodford, a few years ago described as the rock star of pensions and fund management, has lost his mojo. After 23 consecutive months in which withdrawals from his fund has been greater than the new money coming in, Woodford closed it to withdrawals for 28 days, causing concern amongst the tens of thousands whose pension savings and investments are at risk. His flagship fund at its peak worth more than £10 billion has shrunk to about a third of that.

He was born 2 March 1960 and became renowned for his horse riding, Porsche driving and ostentatious lifestyle as well as his canny stock picks. He is a Sun Pisces opposition Pluto and trine Neptune, so has stratospheric ambitions. He has Fixed planets in all four signs –  an indulgent Taurus Moon opposes Neptune square either Mars or Venus in Aquarius with Mars opposition Uranus. Fixed signs are acquisitive, especially a Taurus Moon; a strong Uranus is impulsive; and a visionary Neptune can be delusional. Though they do bring stamina and endurance.

He’s on his Second Saturn Return at the moment which usually brings a reality check; and his Solar Arc Sun had been opposing his Neptune as the slide began. He’ll be in for jolts, jangles and high insecurity from this July as tr Uranus squares his Mars, off and on into 2020 by which time tr Uranus opposes his Neptune so it’ll be a long nerve-stretched run. Though he’ll pick up a head of steam from late February 2020 as tr Pluto squares his Jupiter/Pluto midpoint running into 2021.

His most recent companies, set up on 11 April and 9 May 2016 – both kicked off with the head-in-the-clouds Jupiter opposition Neptune square Saturn and Mars in Sagittarius – so the ingredients for a bubble-burst with multiple setbacks was there from the start and exacerbated since then by Neptune moving by transit and Solar Arc to close aspects to exact. Plus the 11 April company had the unstable Sun Uranus in Aries square Pluto, which is under heavy assault from tr Pluto exactly now.

If it sounds too good to be true in the money arena – it usually is.

One of the most high profile miscarriages of justice in the USA in recent times in 1989 was the Central Park Five – five underage black and Hispanic teenagers were charged with rape and attempted murder despite their DNA not being found on the victim; and confessions were coerced out of them. Trump took out a full-page ad calling for the death penalty. Republican commentator Pat Buchanan insisted that if only “the eldest of that wolf pack were tried, convicted and hanged in Central Park and the 13- and 14-year-olds were stripped, horsewhipped, and sent to prison, the park might soon be safe again for women.”

They were imprisoned and only set free when another rapist imprisoned for other crimes admitted to it 12 years later and his DNA matched. He said he was the only attacker. Michael Bloomberg, then Mayor of New York, resisted paying the five compensation but subsequently the next Mayor Bill de Blasio did agree.

A recent Netflix series When They See US has brought it back into the spotlight again.  The head prosecutor who oversaw the case and observed the police interrogations at the time was Linda Fairstein, now a crime novelist. In light of this recent publicity she has had her publishing contract withdrawn. Her wiki write-up contains another case in which malicious prosecution was alleged; and her part in not having Dominique Strauss Kahn charged with sexual assault in 2012.

Born 5 May 1947 Fairstein is a tough Sun Taurus square Pluto, with Pluto conjunct Saturn and her Sun most likely opposition a Scorpio Moon so very intense and stubborn. Plus she has a fairly brash Venus Mars in Aries with Venus opposition Neptune and trine Pluto, and Mars sextile Uranus and trine Pluto – she enjoys power and high excitement.

At the time of the rape the tr Uranus Saturn Neptune was in place in Capricorn and the tr Saturn Neptune were conjunct hr Solar Arc South Node exactly, which is fairly obscure but suggests something in the spirit of the times was playing on her inferior instincts. Tr Neptune Saturn was also square her Venus so she’d be emotionally upset.

This year she has tr Uranus in a jolting and unsettling square to her Saturn and tr Saturn square her Mars producing setbacks; with worries and concerns in 2020 from tr Neptune square her Uranus.

Trish Meili, the victim, 24 June 1960, who still suffers memory loss and some long-term damage from the attack which nearly killed her is reportedly unhappy about the Five being paid compensation since she says there was more than one attacker and supports the police.

Born 24 June 1960, she is a Sun Venus in Cancer which is part of a talented Half Grand Sextile from Neptune opposition Mars in Taurus, sextile trine Sun Venus and Pluto. When the attack happened the tr Uranus or Saturn Neptune in Capricorn may have been opposing her Cancer Moon; and her Solar Arc Neptune was on the apex of a Yod to her Sun Venus sextile Mars – so pulling on the fraught energy of that Half Grand Sextile involving Mars and Pluto.

She isn’t looking too happy this year with tr Uranus conjunct her Mars.

I’m not sure at what point the Trump ad or Buchanan rant came out but the USA justice system is worse than the UK’s (which can be exceedingly ropey in its own way) in allowing what would be contempt of court utterances to be sprayed around publicly prejudicing proceedings.

Dr John, the wild, wayout and hugely talented New Orleans musician, singer and songwriter has died. Though given his forty year heroin habit it’s a miracle he survived as long as he did. The Guardian obituary describes his ‘innovative, brilliant and at times unsettling synthesis of New Orleans musical traditions – jazz, funk, rhythm and blues – made by a man steeped in both the city’s culture and the darker side of life.’ ‘Singing songs about Louisiana voodoo thick with New Orleans slang and Creole patois, clad in a flamboyant Mardi Gras headdress and facepaint.’

Born 20 November 1941, his maternal grandfather sang and danced in minstrel shows and his father repaired sound equipment in the clubs around the city’s French Quarter. His son accompanied him, learned guitar and piano, and by the age of 14 was playing with local bands in bars and juke joints, sharing the stage with strippers and magicians. He lost a finger from a gunshot wound, intervening in a fight which meant he couldn’t play guitar and focussed on piano as his principal instrument. In his teens he picked up a heroin habit which at one point ended him up in the Fort Worth penitentiary in Texas. To support his habit he dabbled in pimping and petty crime and worked briefly as the assistant to a backstreet abortionist.

A life and a half.

He was a Sun Scorpio opposition Uranus Saturn in Taurus, so immensely stubborn with stamina, and with clearly all of Scorpio’s tendency to the dark side. His Uranus was  in a creative trine to Neptune; and his Mars in impulsive Aries was in a bull-headed trine to Pluto attracting him to risk as well.

His creative 5^th harmonic was exceptionally strong; as was his breakthrough/genius/exploring the unorthodox 13H. They don’t make em like they used to.

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The Cuba freeze is back on in earnest, upending Obama’s normalizing of relations in 2014 after 54 years of hostility. Trump’s slash-and-burn approach to anything his predecessor achieved has now resulted in further travel and other restrictions being slapped on. Not only is it contemptibly petty-minded, self-defeating and stupid as a policy driver, it’s downright pathological.

Cuba was given nominal independence on 20 May 1902 which gives a revolutionary Uranus opposition Pluto Mercury which sits very uncomfortably with the USA Mars in Gemini and indeed Trump’s Gemini Sun opposition Sagittarius Moon. The Cuba Mars in Taurus squares Trump’s Pluto and the Cuba late degree Taurus Sun squares Trump’s Mars – so all in all it was never going to be his favourite holiday destination.

The remainder of Trump’s term (first) look undermining for relations with tr Neptune square the Cuba Uranus and Mercury; and there are tough economic times ahead in 2022/23 with tr Pluto conjunct the Cuba Saturn.

Miguel Diaz-Carnel who took over as the first non-Castro President in decades on 19 April 2018 is seen as a continuity candidate having been deputy for some years under Raoul Castro. His term chart looks crises-strewn with an unstable, constantly-changing Sun Uranus in late Aries square Pluto with Pluto conjunct Mars and Mars conjunct Saturn – very unsettled    and high-risk with the potential for violence and sharp setbacks.

Diaz-Canel was born 20 April 1960, a few months before Obama so with certain similarities, but he isn’t a good match for Trump with their relationship chart having a power-struggling, one-upmanship T Square of Sun, Jupiter, Pluto; and a suspicious, highly strung Saturn Neptune square Uranus which is being challenged strongly till the end of this year.

English singer-songwriter Oritse Williams has been having a very up and down week, having been cleared of a rape charge in two hours by a jury that had been hanging over him for three years. And then seeing a house he owned go up in flames from arson. It had previously been owned by Ronnie Corbett and Williams didn’t live there. It was on the market for sale and vandals broke in shortly after his not guilty plea was handed down.

Born 27 November 1986, he has a complicated chart with a serious Sun Saturn in Sagittarius; his Saturn in a wobbly square to Jupiter in Pisces and his Sun square Mars in Pisces.  With a charming and passionate Venus Pluto in Scorpio. His Pluto has moved by Solar Arc at the moment to conjunct his Saturn now which is depressing and restrictive; with tr Uranus opposing his Venus exactly now as well for an emotional release and upset. His life will continue to rock n roll through this year with more mishaps to come but he’ll get his confidence back for a run of successes in 2020/21; though with some dips as well. Not a chart that’s designed for life on an even keel.

The ceremonial remembering of the 75th anniversary of the D Day Invasion of France on 6^th June 1944 by Allied Forces started today in Portsmouth with the Queen surrounded by 16 world leaders paying tribute to those who died.  It was the largest seaborne invasion in history, beginning the liberation of German-occupied France (and later western Europe) from Nazi control, and laid the foundations of the Allied victory on the Western Front.   It had been in planning for over a year with a decoy plan being leaked to the Germans to confuse them about the date and place of the landings.

The 6^th June 1944 had a brutal Mars Pluto conjunction in Leo sextile Uranus Venus so it well described a dangerous military exercise that could easily have gone the wrong way.  Tr Jupiter in Leo was exactly conjunct Uranus and opposition Pluto on the France chart giving it a better chance of success; and the Solar Arc Uranus was about to cross the France Ascendant exact within months for total freedom.

On the USA chart Uranus was on a full return with the Mars Pluto conjunct the US leadership Leo North Node as it took the lead. On the UK chart tr Neptune was in a highly-strung conjunction to the UK Uranus; with tr Jupiter moving through the hopeful 11^th to conjunct the UK Saturn within weeks as the invasion slowly made headway.

One of the many stories told of the day is of Bill Millin, Lord Lovat’s personal piper, who stepped off the landing craft into the water and marched up and down the beach playing his bagpipes to rouse morale, with soldiers dying all round him. The Germans later said they hadn’t shot him because they thought he was mad. A sculpture of him now stands in Normandy. He was the only piper there since they had been banned in England after too many pipers died in WW1.

He was born 14 July 1922 in Glasgow and was a Sun in Cancer with his Pluto and Mercury also in Cancer square Saturn Jupiter in Libra and trine Uranus – patriotic, creative, tough-minded, confident. On D Day, his Solar Arc Mars was exactly square his Saturn and North Node for high risk; and in the weeks following when he returned home unscathed tr Jupiter was trine his Uranus bringing elation and relief.

Ivanka Trump is the US President’s favourite daughter, invited to high level diplomatic and economic meetings, said by him to be the most likely to follow in his political footsteps and would according to him have made a great head of the World Bank.  Beyond satire.

Born 30 October 1981 to Ivana Trump, wife number one, she attended Pennsylvania University, from which she graduated cum laude with a degree in economics. She worked for the Trump Organization and had her own jewellery and fashion line, which latter now appears defunct, though several Chinese trademarks have been associated with that business.

She is a Sun Scorpio sextile Mars in Virgo, so undoubtedly determined and hard-working. She has a super-confident Jupiter Pluto conjunction in Libra, conjunct Mercury and widely Saturn, so she’s quite a force to be reckoned with. She also has rather ethereal Venus Neptune in Sagittarius which gives a misleading impression of softness – she’s titanium-hard.

She’s certainly giving it all she’s got in 2020/2021 with tr Pluto square her Jupiter Pluto, which is similar to the influences that brought her father to prominence. Tr Uranus opposes her Sun from May 2020 onwards, off and on into 2021 which will bring considerable changes into her life. And tr Uranus is trine her Jupiter/Node from early July to late September 2020 over the nomination, repeating in April 2021.

She’s looking cheerful over the Inauguration with tr Pluto square her Jupiter Pluto and tr Jupiter in Aquarius square her Sun – though there are much less auspicious influences following – the Uranus Mars in Taurus square Saturn bouncing off her Sun for several. But she is definitely on a roll and in a lucky phase.

One of the astro-mysteries, well psychological mysteries to be truthful, is her relationship with her father – the composite chart has a truly horrible, aggravated Mercury, Sun, Mars, Saturn Uranus conjunction – and that is nasty, suggesting at one level emotional cruelty, with a Krakatoa’s worth of underground anger. She’ll need all her Scorpio secrecy and self-control to keep a lid on her real feelings.

Husband Jared, 10 January 1981, isn’t looking quite so geared up and confident as she is ahead. He has tr Pluto conjunct his Capricorn Sun till late this year and then square his Pluto in 2020/21 – so will be under fairly hefty pressures and challenges. He does have an insecure, jolting tr Uranus square his Mars in Aquarius in May/June 2020 and again across the election, which may spark off misjudgments and over-hasty reactions which backfire. He does have some lucky breaks in 2020 but he lacks her tr Pluto square Jupiter.

Their relationship chart which has a power-couple composite Jupiter Pluto, though that can turn into an internal power struggles as well, is under a damp cloud from tr Saturn square till early 2020; looks very much on edge with catastrophic crises mounting mid December through till February 2020. And very edgy during his tricky patches in May/June and November 2020.

Jared’s relationship with his father-in-law is very fated to start with, their composite chart containing an exact Yod of Mars sextile Pluto inconjunct Mercury, suggesting a connection that will change both lives irrevocably for good or ill. It’s under sombre influences with tr Saturn square the Mercury and Jupiter till late this year; and has ongoing dissolving Neptune transits late this year, especially in December across the New Year and right through off and on till after the 2021 Inauguration.

Just a mini note: Jared does not see eye top eye with Melania  – evasiveness and real dislike with humps and bumps later this year.

Final Trump thought for the week (I hope): Piers Morgan is a tabloid UK journalist, who used to be on USA TV, knew Trump of old and generally stands up for him at every opportunity. Born 30 March 1965 he’s a noisy though charming Sun Venus in Aries; with a volcanic Mars Uranus Pluto in Virgo opposition Saturn. It’s not the easiest of interfaces with Trump, though Morgan’s Sun Venus falling in Trump’s 8^th does suggest a deep connection. What will make the difference is Morgan’s Jupiter in Taurus conjunct Trump’s Midheaven (and Algol) so it’ll suit both of them career-wise – Trump because he likes being liked and Morgan because he’s a screamer and a contrarian and it allows him to stand out from the crowd.

The Chinese Communist Party’s Maoist tendencies are out in force over the 30^th anniversary of the suppression of the Tiananmen Square demonstrators; and elsewhere as they seem  intent on not only quelling internal dissent but also playing hardball globally.

The CPP, the founding and ruling party of China, was established at a congress starting 23 July 1921 in Shanghai. This gives Sun Mars in Cancer and Mercury Pluto in Cancer; as well as Jupiter Saturn in Virgo.  When the democracy activists were gunned down in their hundreds, maybe thousands, and martial law was declared in 1989 the triple conjunction in Capricorn, which oversaw the fall of the Berlin Wall, was opposing the Chinese Communist Party’s Pluto Mercury with Mars in Cancer hitting on the CPP’s Mars Sun. A high pressure moment but one which they resisted with all their considerable might.

At the moment tr Pluto is opposing the CPP’s Mars exactly and on and off till late 2020; with this year’s Eclipses tugging at the Pluto Mercury  – so there will be considerable pressure on the CPP; with an undermining tr Neptune opposing the Jupiter this year and then the Saturn in two years’ time which is a three or four year loss-making slide. The pressures won’t ease since tr Pluto moves to opposes the Sun/Mars and then Sun by 2023/24. So there will be a volcanic mood within the ruling body.

The China chart itself of 1949 looks bullishly confident this year and next with tr Pluto conjunct the Jupiter; though with a few downers from tr Saturn square the 8^th house financial Mercury Neptune.  But it does look trapped with tr Pluto moving through the 12^th till the mid 2020s.   Mid 2021 through till 2023 look violently unsettled with tr Uranus square the 7^th house Mars Pluto which may mean a neighbourly squall. This is when Xi Jinping’s latest term chart looks at its least stable with tr Pluto square the Uranus.

Liverpool has been going crazy over its football club’s European Cup win in Madrid and has elevated manager Jurgen Klopps to idol status after a run of near misses.

Born 16 June 1967 7.28am Stuttgart, Germany, he has an 11^th house Sun Gemini square a 3^rd house Uranus Pluto in Virgo so a good team person, but also a rebel, with a quirky way of communicating. He has a charmingly frivolous Jupiter Venus in Leo on his Ascendant. But more pointedly a rigorously disciplined, self-reliant Saturn in Aries on his MC opposition Mars square Mercury in Cancer –he won’t be backwards about expressing his irritation when things go wrong.

At the moment he has his Solar Arc Jupiter square his Sun for a surge of confidence leading to success; and a lucky tr Uranus square his Jupiter for a fortunate break. That latter repeats on and off into 2020 so there should be more celebrations to come.