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Christopher Plummer, acclaimed for a wide range of standout stage performances as Lear and Iago amongst many others, became a household name because of his role as Captain von Trapp in The Sound of Music alongside Julie Andrews. He loathed the movie and the indelible imprint it made on his image describing it as like being beaten to death by a Hallmark card. He has just died aged 91 after a fall.

  His long career was marked by periods of excessive drinking and boorish behaviour but he staged a late revival in his 80s with an Oscar for Beginners and other creditable movies.

  Born 13 December 1929 in Toronto, Canada, no birth time, he had a fiery and outspoken Sagittarius Sun Mars conjunction; with Venus in Sagittarius opposition Jupiter square Neptune and Venus trine Uranus in Aries. Lively to say the least. His Moon was in heavyweight Taurus conjunct the North Node.

  When The Sound of Music premiered the tr Uranus Pluto in Virgo opposition tr Saturn in Pisces was moving to hard aspect his Sagittarius planets and his Jupiter – for highs and lows. He wasn’t the easiest mix for Julie Andrews with his Uranus falling in her 7^th house of relationship and his chilly Saturn in her 4^th. Though his Jupiter would smooth over a few rough edges. There is a slight crossover of each of their North Nodes which is probably significant for such an iconic movie – his Moon North Node in Taurus fell in Julie’s 8^th opposition her Moon; and his Pluto opposed her North Node.  

  He was married three times, the first two only lasting a few years each, and the third cleaned up his act and survived for 53 years. His third wife Elaine Taylor was a Libra like Julie Andrews – and both ladies had hard Saturn Mars aspects allowing them to put up with difficult men.

Actress, writer and producer Michaela Coel’s ‘I May Destroy You’ a semi-autobiographical TV drama series about her own experience of sexual assault got rave reviews – “universal acclaim” on Metacritic. So there were yowls of outrage when it didn’t get a nod at the Golden Globe nominations though the show has subsequently in the SAG Awards.

 Michaela Coel was born in London on 1 October 1987 to Ghanaian parents, went to university but left when she became a full-immersion Pentecostalist, then went to drama school, gave poetry readings; and in her late twenties wrote and starred in her own breakout TV vehicle Chewing Gum, a BAFTA-award winning comedy about a sex-starved immigrant kid in London’s public housing.  She moved into serious drama in the TV mini-series ‘Black Sun Rising’, playing a survivor of the Rwandan genocide fighting for justice at the international criminal court. Her performance was described as “mesmerising” and having “incandescent intensity”.

  In 2016 she had her drink spiked and was assaulted by two men which became the inspiration for ‘I May Destroy You’.  In it she is less concerned with the failures of the justice system than with ‘the psychology of the self: How do you become whole again after trauma breaks you open?’ It’s her attempt to make sense of the senseless.

  She’s a Sun Libra in a creative square to Neptune; with a highly-charged, super-intense Mercury Pluto in Scorpio; and an angry and adventurous Saturn Uranus in Sagittarius square Mars and trine Jupiter. Her charming Venus in Libra opposes Jupiter and probably squares a workaholic Capricorn Moon.

  Her midpoints indicate passionate enthusiasm, a turbo-charged communicative Mercury, creative talent and an explosive need to upset the status quo.

  When the assault took place in 2016 she was on her First Saturn Return with a disorienting square from tr Neptune; tr Pluto was around the square to her Venus, perhaps conjunct her Moon and conjunct her Solar Arc Saturn for an emotionally damaging and distressing time. With an explosive tr Uranus opposition her Solar Arc Mars.

   She’s on a confident and successful roll this year and next with tr Pluto square her Jupiter; though with some challenges and aggravation from tr Pluto trine her Mars.

   Her creative and seeking-soul 7^th Harmonic is strong as is her ‘obsessive dream’ 11H.

A force to be reckoned with.

Pic: JustJohal

Toyah Wilcox, venerable punk pop star, actress and all-round entertainer, has been one of the pandemic hits with her wild and wayout YouTube Sunday Lockdown Lunch videos with her husband Fripp, musician and founder of the rock band King Crimson – 4.3 million views.

  They’ve been together extraordinarily for 35 years given that both have exceptionally challenging temperaments and charts. The past year has been the longest stretch they have spent together. In normal years, both are touring or working away, and they lived in separate houses until 2001. Even now they exist together as two strongly independent people, not having joint bank accounts and each doing their own laundry. She reckons it works because both are passionate about their careers and don’t cling.

  She was born 18 May 1958 11.57 am Birmingham and has a self-sufficient Taurus New Moon in her 10^th house of career squaring onto Pluto, so she will be resistant to being controlled or crowded. Her childhood was difficult with medical problems galore including a twisted spine and developmental problems with her feet and hip sockets, requiring surgery and physiotherapy. She was bullied at school for her disabilities and her lisp; her father went bankrupt; and her relationship with her damaged mother was difficult. Despite her physical problems she started running away aged 12 and onwards and became famous young. She said in a recent interview: “I am deliberately, relentlessly happy because my mother deliberately, relentlessly tried to stop me being happy.”

  Her New Moon is also on the focal point of a Yod to Jupiter sextile Saturn which would set her on a unique path in life. Her Mercury in Taurus opposes Neptune and squares a 12^th house Uranus fuelling her innovative and rebellious, oddball tendencies.

  Her husband, Robert Fripp, 16 May 1946, no birth time, is also a Sun Taurus with probably a Scorpio Moon which sits on top of her New Moon square Pluto – so quite a potent and challenging combination. He has a do-or-die-determined Mars Pluto in Leo which is conjunct her Uranus; and his Uranus Venus in Gemini oppose her Saturn and square her Mars. No one could say it’s an easy combo.

  Their relationship chart has a fiery composite Sun Mars which squares onto Pluto and probably the Moon which is more than tricky, but also fairly locked together.  There’s a Pluto square Venus for a hint of passion and a Pollyanna-ish, gloss- over-the-difficulties Jupiter Neptune conjunction which may trine the composite Moon.

  Just goes to show that context can be all for relationships. A constantly separated lifestyle will soak up a good deal of the stress and strain. But still it’s amazing it has stood the test of time.

Jordan Peterson, the controversial Canadian psychology professor who became a love-hate figure for his anti-political correctness views, condemnation of academic “safe spaces” and his refusal to use transgender preferred pronouns, has a new book coming soon. At one point he was described as an “icon of white supremacy and hate speech.”

   In a publicity interview he described his recent spiral into drug addiction and suicidal thoughts, having become hooked on benzodiazepines prescribed to counter a violent reaction to a cranky diet and anxiety over his wife’s cancer. Along the way he was misdiagnosed as a schizophrenic. He then underwent a Russian treatment that put him into an induced coma for eight days to clear his system of drugs.

  Born 12 June 1962 2.49am Edmonton, Canada, he has a complicated and highly charged chart. He has a 2^nd house Gemini Sun and Mercury square Jupiter in Pisces opposition a grandstanding Pluto in the 5^th – keen on money, pushily-confident with Jupiter opposition Pluto and highly strung with a focal point Mercury.  Such a Mercury will make him scattered with a fairly disorganised mind.

   He also has a talented Air Grand Trine of Saturn in Aquarius in his 10^th trine a Libra Moon trine Mercury so is custom-built as a communicator but it adds to the pressures on his over-active mind which easily gets over-stimulated.

  Plus he has Mars in Taurus in the 12^th opposition Neptune square Saturn opposition a ‘leadership’ Leo North Node, which is stubborn to the nth degree, keen on publicity, will tend to attract angry reactions and is quite neurotic.

  His 6^th house of health holds both Neptune and his Moon so not messing around with his health will be crucial, which includes weirdo diets. His emotional state will also affect his physical health more than most.

  His Progressed Mars was conjunct his Sun around the time he was in his Russian coma and emerged unable to walk or remember; and at the same time his Progressed Mercury was conjunct his Uranus.

   Tr Neptune will square his Sun this year for a less than energetic phase with certain plans not working out; and tr Pluto is now just into his 10^th house, staying for many years, which suggests a long search for a new direction in life. Th is year tr Saturn square tr Uranus will batter his Mars and Neptune as well as Saturn this year along the way of his Second Saturn Return.

  He may have passed his moment.

Pic: Gage Skidmore.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the progressive Democratic Congresswoman, has been describing her fear of being killed in the January 6th Capitol invasion and how it triggered an earlier trauma in her life when she was sexually assaulted.

  She hit back at conservative Republicans like Ted Cruz for denying what she described as their responsibility for the storming of the Capitol complex, which left five people dead.

   Born 13 October 1989 at 11.50am Bronx, New York (from memory), she has an assertive and fiery Sun and Mars in Libra with her Mars on the focal point of a pro-active and restless Cardinal T Square to Jupiter in Cancer opposition Neptune Saturn (Uranus) in Capricorn and an Aries Moon. With such an emphasised/afflicted Mars in square to Saturn Neptune she’s more than likely to have run into abusive situations in her life.

  And tr Saturn moving through the nadir of her First Quadrant at the moment is likely to bring up old unresolved psychological issues to be faced and healed.

  There was nothing too dramatic showing on her chart over January 6^th, apart from a couple of confused, uncertain and stuck Saturn hard aspects to a couple of her midpoints; and a run of Neptunian transits through the year which will make her more emotional and vulnerable than usual.

  Both Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley, being Capricorn will trigger her highly strung and reforming triple conjunction. Cruz’s Uranus is conjunct her Mars and Hawley’s Pluto conjunct her Sun so both will make her agitated and feel crowded or manipulated.  Both also have crossovers with her Pluto – Cruz with his Mars conjunct causing aggravation and power struggles; and Hawley’s Saturn being in opposition so he’ll continually try to block her.

  She’s not at her most successful through this phase of several years and hasn’t the best of relationships with either Biden or Kamala Harris (see previous post November 10 2020.) But she has decades ahead of her so will come into her own at some point in the future.  

Northern Ireland is feeling the cold and turbulent wind of Brexit more than most with community tensions rising and border staff at ports now withdrawn because of safety fears from paramilitary threats. The Good Friday Agreement so critical to peace could be in jeopardy.

  A combination of Boris Johnson’s indifference to the implications of Brexit and triumphalist lies, exacerbated by Ursula von der Leyen’s recent crass actions over vaccines have stoked fuel on the fire of local feeling.  A councillor said: “This is the sad reality of those who imposed terms on Northern Ireland without the consent of the delicate community balance which exists here. The protocol was bound to end in tears and here we have society’s structure falling apart.”

Since 1 January, traders in Northern Ireland have been subjected to a litany of checks on goods and food being sold from Great Britain. Haulage firms have hiked prices by 12 per cent this week and hospitals, schools and prisons have warned of looming problems obtaining food. People are having to pay additional costs to bring food in to Northern Ireland and they are going to be passed onto some of the lowest-paid people in the UK.

  The Good Friday Agreement was signed on 10 April 1998 at 5pm in Belfast bringing closure, albeit fragile, to the Troubles which had plagued Northern Ireland for three decades and brought terrorist attacks on the UK mainland.

  It has a starkly difficult and violent, though suppressed 8^th house Sun, Saturn, Mars in Aries. This has been under strain for some years but tensions mounted sharply after the shock of Brexit in 2016 when tr Uranus in Aries was moving across those planets. And the pressure hasn’t lifted since with tr Pluto moving in square.

  Tr Pluto is now square the Mars/Saturn midpoint for this month, and that crises-ridden influence with the additional of high-risk and angry tr Pluto square the Sun/Mars midpoint return from July till the New Year. From early 2022 through till late 2023 tr Pluto will square the Mars which will be aggravating in the extreme.

  Relations between the North and the South will deteriorate sharply from this June, on and off till January 2023 with tr Neptune conjunct the composite Mars and opposition the composite Saturn. With a chill and separation in 2022 from tr Saturn conjunct the composite Sun. And 2023/24 is showing a sharp divergence as well with tr Uranus square the composite Sun. That’s from the Ireland 1949 and Northern Ireland December 7^th 1922 charts.

  For more detail: see previous post: September 17 2020.

  The only ray of sunshine is that Joe Biden may step in and bring down the heavy hand about fixing the problem.

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Pious sentiments about ‘democratising finance’ and sticking it to the rich guys may come badly unstuck for small chat-room investors who sent share prices soaring recently for a moribund Gameshop and lacklustre AMC theatre group. In the process they cost short-sellers a small fortune, before moving on to send the price of silver soaring to its highest level in a decade.

None of the moves had much to do with underlying economic fundamentals which left analysts fearing a sharp reversal for investors similar to the dot-com craze tanking in 2001 and the housing market collapsed in 2008.

  On Monday, shares in GameStop, the struggling retailer championed by Reddit investors declined by 30 percent, sliced in half from their peak but still over 1,000 percent higher than where they began the year. One broker said “It’s pump and dump in a totally new, viral format and there are huge risks that need to be looked at right now.” He said it had the markings of a market mania that historically ends in big losses for small traders.

  Robinhood, a financial services company, whose game-like approach facilitated much of the rise in GameStop and AMC shares, then had to pull back sharply sparking off criticism. Robinhood may struggle to hold on to its outsider identity as it is forced to play by the rules, industry participants say.

Elizabeth Warren sounded a note of caution. “We actually don’t know who all the players are in all this — whether there’s big money on both sides.”

  Robinhood was founded 18 April 2013 in California by Vlad Tenev, a Bulgarian-American, and Baiju Bhatt, an Indian-American. It has a fiery, adventurous, pro-active and go-getting Sun Mars in Aries; with an excitable Uranus Mercury also in Aries square Pluto amplifying its innovative, not to say disruptive streak in bucking the status quo. There’s also a more materialistic Venus in Taurus opposition Saturn in Scorpio, so making money will be in its DNA.

  This year they will be seriously jolted from mid to late March with tr Uranus opposing its Saturn. But it’s 2022/23 when they will run into the buffers as tr Pluto squares their Mars and Sun to bring them to a grinding halt. With Solar Arc Sun Mars opposing the Saturn in 2023 as well.

It’s not that the finance big boys don’t need a serious sorting out but this could end in tears.

Myanmar has returned to its dark days of military oppression with the army seizing power, claiming that recent elections giving an 83% victory to Aung San Suu Kyi’s party and trouncing their own party were fraudulent. They have installed their commander-in-chief as leader and detained senior politicians. The country was ruled by the military from 1962 to 2011, and the transition to democracy thereafter still guaranteed three important ministries and 25 per cent of parliament for army appointees.

  Aung San Suu Kyi, daughter of the Father of the nation, became a heroine in the west during her 15 years of house arrest, showered with the Nobel and other medals. But her reputation was irreparably tarnished when she gradually returned to power as the de facto leader, by her unwillingness to condemn the atrocities and genocide waged by the army against the Rohingya minority in the country’s west. Her submission to the military in other areas as well brought concerns that she was legitimising their control.

  Myanmar was founded as Burma at a time set by astrologers as propitious, on 4 January 1948 at 4.20am Rangoon. The unyielding Saturn Pluto in Leo was in place with Saturn square a Taurus North Node; and a Capricorn Sun trine Mars and in a vague square to Neptune Moon. It’s difficult to see what the astrologers thought they were picking apart from Jupiter on the Ascendant.

  The country chart has a deadlocked and possibly violent Solar Arc Mars square Saturn this year; a disruptive and shocking Solar Arc Uranus conjunct Mars as well; and an undermining tr Neptune square its 7^th house Uranus.  Co-operation with the international community has never been the country’s strong point with Uranus in the 7th, and there is already condemnation from the White House and the EU about the coup. There’s also a tr Uranus square the Myanmar Pluto  from mid this year which could point to a rebellious backlash as the younger generation react against oppression. Tr Uranus also squares and tr Saturn is conjunct the country’s financial Venus so there may be sanctions and shortages as a result.

  Aung San Suu Kyi, 19 June 1945, is yet another Sun Gemini with Uranus close by and both square Jupiter in Virgo. She’s also got an intense, stubborn and not-exactly-compassionate Venus Mars in Taurus square Pluto.

  At the moment she has her Progressed Mars conjunct her Sun for a distinct shock and it stays in effect for months to come. This year also the tr Uranus in Taurus square tr Saturn in Aquarius is rattling her Pluto and Venus for a major and scary upheaval over coming months; with a run of disastrous and undermining Neptune transits in hard aspect to her Jupiter now, then her Sun/Uranus and Mars/Pluto, moving on to square her Sun in 2023. Then she has a downbeat and stuck Solar Arc Saturn square her Sun in 2024. Nothing that looks too cheerful ahead.  

‘Tis the season clearly for actresses to air their grievances about not being treated as they’d like. The latest is Katherine Heigl, formerly of Gray’s Anatomy, who dissed her chances by turning down an Emmy nomination on the basis she hadn’t been given good enough material and left the show two years later. Then complained her role in a Seth Rogen movie was ‘sexist’ when presumably she had read the script before signing. Having built up a reputation for being difficult she says she was then effectively blacklisted.

   Her abrupt and very public dismissal of the 2008 Best Supporting Actress Emmy nomination was considered a “swipe” at Grey’s Anatomy producers for cutting back her role. It was so bizarre and such a slap in the face for the producers it’s a miracle she wasn’t removed instantly.

  Born 24 November 1978, she’s a Sun Sagittarius with a showbizzy Mars, Neptune and Mercury in Sagittarius square Saturn (Moon) in Virgo. A Mars square Saturn is scratchy, on a short fuse and with Neptune in the middle veers towards the neurotic/paranoid.

 Clashing with the formidable and super-successful Shonda Rimes, 13 January 1970, producer of Gray’s Anatomy and more recently Bridgerton, was never going to end well with Rimes’ ultra-determined Mars in Pisces opposition Pluto clashing with Heigl’s Sagittarius planets.

  Heigl has a few rays of Jupiterian sunshine this year but is running towards a Plutonic blockage in 2022.

  The other actress in recent times who spoke out about being written off as difficult is Janet Hubert, who starred in the first three seasons of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air with Will Smith until she left and later blamed him for having spoken out against her. Though in subsequent interviews she admitted she was going through a difficult personal time which affected her behaviour with a new baby and unemployed husband, which no one knew.

  Born 13 January 1956 in Chicago, she’s a Sun Capricorn with an intense Venus in Aquarius opposition Pluto Jupiter square Mars in Scorpio and Saturn in Sagittarius. And that is heavyweight – with again a Mars Saturn theme but amplified with Pluto involved as well.

   Poor-victim-me isn’t a good look for women aiming to be taken seriously as equal and independent. The first step to self-awareness is owning your actions and your mouth.