The Trump Tribe forced to face reality

Donald Trump has brushed aside a judge’s seering comments about his company’s fraud in inflating the worth of his properties as he was landed with a fine of $350m plus interest. The frauds the judge said “leap off the page and shock the conscience”. “Their (Trumps) complete lack of contrition and remorse borders on pathological.” His two sons face fines of $4m each as well.

  The Trump Organization LLC 27 July 1999 is certainly showing a meltdown over the next two or three years with tr Pluto conjunct the Neptune, opposition the Mercury and then the Sun. With a complete meltdown later in the decade. The chart has an evasive Sun Neptune with a square to Jupiter which perfectly describes the over-hopeful (?), deceptive exaggerations involved – leading to a scandal caused by their own flakiness.

  As Sydney Blumenthal points out the giant fortune Trump was handed by his father Fred still ended up on the rocks due to his hubris.  https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/feb/17/trump-hubris-family-empire-new-york

  Fred Trump’s posthumous chart, 11 October 1905, is showing signs of extreme anxiety over the next three years, so wherever he is he’ll be cursing at his son. Fred’s controlling Pluto is conjunct his son Donald Snr’s Sun – and down the line it goes as Donald Snr’s Pluto is conjunct his son Donald Jnr’s Mars. Fear-based parenting.

  One complication of Trump’s chart which to some extent is a phenomenon that was shared with Maggie Thatcher is the astrology reflects the individual’s experience of the event rather than describing the event itself. Trump is so wrapped up in his pathological arrogance and derealization (= divorced from reality) that he does not react in a normal/sane way. Maggie’s chart on occasion did not record much when she was in danger since she in her own way protected herself against reality by not recognizing she was at risk.

  However Trump at the moment has tr Pluto opposition his Saturn/Pluto midpoint late this month and through March which can refer to loss of fortune and deprivation.  And his SA Pluto is square his Venus/Saturn midpoint this year hitting him where he is most wounded – only loved because successful. Take away the money and he’s nothing.  That rolls on through 2025.  He does have some blips of luck through mid March to early April, but is foully bad tempered through April/May.

 Oldest son Donald, 31 December 1977 5.20 pm West Plam Beach, Florida, has tr Saturn, bringer of chickens coming home to roost, sitting on his Midheaven, so maybe karma is working.  He looks shocked at what has happened exactly now and while he will have some cheer mid March to early April and in May and early 2025, he’s also facing a raft of downers and disappointments in 2025. He won’t be out of the financial woods until well into the 2030s.

  Eric Trump, 6 January 1984 7pm New York, like his brother has a few ups and many more downs and setbacks with a grinding run through till 2027.

  Ivanka appears to have charmed the judge and her fortunes are feather-bedded anyway via Jared’s sweetheart $2 billion deal with MBS of Saudi Arabia. But even she looks aggravated this year and more so with confusion on top through 2027/28.

Gaza charts – 1917 best on test

Gaza – I have waded through various possible dates for Gaza matching them against subsequent events – the 2008 Gaza War (Operation Cast Lead, also known as the Gaza Massacre) and the Hamas attack last October.

 The 9 November 2017 9am chart. The ceasefire after the Six Day War of 11 June 1967 when Israel took over Gaza amongst other territories. The Oslo Accords 13 September 1993 which had it not collapsed due to Arafat would have given the Palestinians some autonomy. Gaza given to the Palestinian Authority 15 August 2005. Hamas Government Gaza 14 June 2007. [Anyone has different dates do pitch in.]

  The chart which works best is the Gaza 1917 one – with 2008 showing up with disruptive, destructive influences (tr Mars Pluto in Capricorn).  The October 2023 attack had a peculiarly unpleasant yod of SA Mars sextile SA Pluto inconjunct tr Uranus.

 The Gaza 1967 chart shows up the 2008 massacre war clearly with tr Mars Pluto conjunct the SA Neptune and the tr Saturn opposition tr Uranus hitting the Sun square Uranus. But only a tr Uranus opposition Neptune for 2023.

 The 1993 Oslo Accords oddly, in despite of it never holding, does show up both clearly with ominous portents for 2027.

  The 2005 and 2007 charts are not showing much apart from a few tremors.

 Given that this recent debacle has virtually destroyed Gaza I would have expected to see more obvious astrology – but on this basis the 1917 chart is the best that is available so far.

Edward Said & Barenboim – music bridging the gap

Celebrated as a moderate Palestinian twenty years after his death, Edward Said, the American academic, literary critic and political activist who co-founded with Daniel Barenboim the West-Eastern Orchestra composed of young Israeli, Palestinian, and Arab musicians, has been extensively quoted recently.  ‘His ability to articulate a moral position with a sophisticated historical sensibility’ according to Moustafa Bayoumi, has been a moderating influence on the heated rhetoric since the Hamas attack and throughout the tortuous diplomatic negotiations during his lifetime.

  Said described the Palestinian people as “the victims of the victims”, showing how Palestinians have become inexorably part of Europe’s Jewish history, even if Palestinian “life, culture, and politics have their own dynamic and ultimately their own authenticity”. “I do … understand as profoundly as I can, the fear felt by most Jews that Israel’s security is a genuine protection against future genocidal attempts on the Jewish people.”

 “For Zionism, the Palestinians have now become the equivalent of a past experience reincarnated in the form of a present threat. The result is that the Palestinians’ future as a people is mortgaged to that fear, which is a disaster for them and for Jews.”

  Edward Wadie Said born 1 November 1935 5pm Jerusalem, was a US citizen through his father, who had served in the American Army in World War I. After the 1948 Palestine war, he relocated to Egypt and then to the USA. After Princeton and Harvard he became a professor at Columbia University. He initially supported a two state solution but eventually came to believe that sustainable peace was only possible with one Israeli–Palestinian state.

  He had a Scorpio Sun opposition Uranus in a Half Grand Sextile linking Mars Moon in Capricorn to Saturn in Pisces,  with his Uranus square Pluto on his IC and his Pluto trine Jupiter in Scorpio – a talented outsider, original thinker, adept at balancing complexities. He had a compassionate and creative Neptune Venus in Virgo with his Venus falling midway between Jupiter and Pluto. His 9th house Moon would send him to live abroad in a country not of his birth and also stimulate his love of books, learning and communication.  His Pluto on the IC hinted at his attachment to his roots and his fear of being trapped.

  An interesting man.

Daniel Barenboim, the pianist conductor, who shared Said’s hopes for the Palestinians and brought music to Gaza and the West Bank, was born to Jewish parents in Buenos Aires on 15 November 1942 11.35am. He is a Sun Scorpio conjunct Venus square an Aquarius Moon and trine Jupiter; with Mars Mercury in Scorpio square Pluto.

 Relocating his chart to Gaza puts his formidably charming Sun Venus on his Descendant his Moon in the 10th and his Pluto in the 4th giving him a sensitivity to the occupation.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/15/edward-said-palestine-israel-gaza

Torvill & Dean – a fiery Leo calming Libra mix

Ice dance skating duo Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean have announced their swansong tour in 2025 which will be the fiftieth anniversary of their partnership.  They got together as teenagers in 1975 and rose to become British, European, Olympic, and World champions. Their sizzling Bolero routine which won them a gold at the 1984 Winter Olympics was watched by over 24 million people.

 Despite their sultry numbers on ice they are both in committed relationships to other partners. Jayne, 66, has been in the same marriage for over thirty years and Christopher, married twice is now in an established relationship for over a decade. Since turning professional they have been involved in a variety of ice shows and coaching activities.

  Christopher Dean, 27 July 1958, no birth time, Nottingham, England, is the more volatile of the pair with an excitable  Leo Sun conjunct Uranus on the point of a Fixed T square to  Mars in Taurus in a showbuizzy opposition to Neptune. His stubborn Mars is trine an intense Mercury Pluto in Virgo though marginally softened by having Venus in Cancer sitting on the midpoint. He does have a steadying Saturn in Sagittarius sextile his upbeat Jupiter in Libra. Oddly enough his North Node is in Libra hinting that partnerships and cooperation don’t come easily to him.

  Jayne Torvill, 7 October 1957, n birth time, Nottingham, is an equable Sun Libra in a lucky, successful conjunction to Jupiter and high-energy Mars with her Mercury also in Libra. Her diplomatic skills will come in handy when he gets out of order. Her Moon is Pisces/Aries and her Venus is in seductive Scorpio.

  Their relationship chart has a tight, controlling composite Sun Pluto conjunction with a helpful Jupiter which is on the focal point of a mini Grand trine of Saturn to Uranus, and square Mars. A strong Jupiter in a relationship chart can smooth out rough edges, lends mutual support and act as a morale booster to each partner. Equally a strong Saturn can be a steadying factor giving endurance and practicality – here it is square Venus, sextile Jupiter and trine Uranus.

Alexei Navalny – dying for Russia ++ Putin’s presidency chart ++ Saros cycle ++ Vladimir Kara-Murza

Alexei Navalny, Putin’s most prominent political opponent has died in a Siberian prison colony to which he was sent on what are described as trumped up charges. For many years he has been a lawyer and an anti-corruption activist, with six million YouTube subscribers in 2021. He has described Russia’s ruling party, United Russia, as a “party of crooks and thieves. He was poisoned a few years ago by it is thought Russian security agents and went to Germany for treatment. Unbelievably he returned and was imprisoned for breaking his parole and recently sent to an Arctic penal colony nicknamed “Polar Wolf”, where the temperature at the moment is minus 22C.

  Born 4 June 1976 1.30 pm Moscow, Russia,  he has a 9th house (legal affairs) Gemini Sun Venus opposition Neptune and trine Pluto – a communicator and supremely ambitious. He has his Mars in flamboyant Leo in an uncompromising and excitement-seeking square to Uranus. His Mars is also square an 8th house Jupiter in Taurus and South Node. No one could doubt his courage but in these circumstances one wonders about his recklessness.

  His Chiron in the 8th and his Scorpio North Node both point to an urge towards and an obsession with transformation even if it means the ultimate sacrifice. Losing everything to gain?? –  martyrdom perhaps.  He certainly has a strongly marked 17th harmonic – leaving a legacy behind – which links  Saturn to Mars, Neptune and Pluto indicating extreme hardship and brutality as his way through to immortality.

  He certainly represented an inspiring example for Russia with his Sun Venus conjunct the Jupiter in the 10th in the Russia 8 November 1917 chart 2.12am Leningrad; and his Jupiter in Taurus in the Russia 9th house square the Uranus opposition Saturn. On the Russia 8 December 1991 7.45pm chart his Pluto and Uranus falls in the Russia 4th as he posed a mutinous threat to the new regime’s stability.

  As he dies his Solar Arc Sun is exactly conjunct his Saturn, both at 29 degrees Cancer with tr Pluto opposition both which is a massive amount of pressure. Whether he was poisoned again or succumbed to the brutal Siberian conditions will probably never be known. His last poisoning was only confirmed by the German medical authorities.

“The tyrant dies and his rule is over, the martyr dies and his rule begins.” Soren Kierkegaard.

ADD ON: Another prominent Putin critic in prison in Siberia is Vladimir Kara-Murza, 7 September 1981, a political activist, journalist, author, filmmaker, and political prisoner. He was a protégé of Boris Nemtsov who was assassinated in 2015. Kara-Murza suffers permanent nerve damage as a result of two poisoning attempts which left him in a coma in 2015 and 2017. Late last month it was revealed he had gone missing from the prison in the Omsk region where he was being held in solitary confinement.

 Despite the risk his wife Evgenia, 2 November 1980, has been outspoken in her reaction to Navalny’s death. She said she was ‘horrified, but not surprised’. ‘The use of political assassination as a method of dealing with opponents has been there for the entire rule of Vladimir Putin. ‘[Navalny’s death] was a murder for which Vladimir Putin is responsible.’

  Vladimir Kara-Murza is a Sun Virgo in an idealistic square to Neptune; with a leadership Leo North Node conjunct Mars. Tr Pluto is opposition his North Node now and will be opposing his Node/Mars midpoint and then Mars till late 2026, none of which looks good. If he survives his does have a chink of luck and relief come 2026 with his SA Jupiter conjunct his Uranus. But in the circumstances that is probably over hopeful and he has a good deal of jeopardy and confusion between now and then.

  He has Jupiter and Saturn conjunct in Libra as does his wife = fair-minded, idealistic.  She is a stalwart Sun Scorpio and her two years ahead also look fraught.

  Their relationship chart has a composite Sun, Venus, Mars, Saturn, Jupiter conjunction which describes a relationship in which love, affection and mutual support also involve sacrifice in high risk situations. There is also a yod of composite Pluto sextile Neptune inconjunct Chiron – binding them together in a mission to right wrongs and injustice.

ADD ON: Putin came to power as president on the Uranus return of the Russia 8 November 1917 chart. Stalin died on the Uranus Return of the Russia 20 September 862 JC chart.  Nothing similar at present.  But all three Russia charts including the 8 December 1991 one are showing tremors of disquiet through this April and on into 2025/26 as Pluto moves through the early degrees of Aquarius and Uranus moves into Gemini. The 1991 chart indicates 2027 as a year of cataclysmic change with a major setback at the moment and increasing gloom and hardship in 2025/26.

 Putin’s initially Presidency chart from 31 December 1999 might be an indicator. It will receive a shocking jolt leading to over reactions come this August and on and off into early 2026 with tr Uranus square the Mars.  It already has a panicky-failure SA Neptune conjunct Mars at the moment and is facing devastation/confusion and worse judgement calls through 2025/26 with tr Pluto conjunct the Neptune.  

  The mess he will leave behind when he goes will be considerable.   

Add On (from comments):

You may have a point about Saros cycle 128 being particularly pertinent to the rulers of Russia.

1881, 1899, 1917, 1935, 1953, 1971, 1989, 2007, 2025

1881 – Assassination of Alexander II and accession of Alexander III
1917 – No intro or explanation needed
1936 – Great Purge by Stalin
1953 – Death of Stalin (movie definitely worth watching)
1971 – This may not be relevant. While Khrushchev was removed from power in 1964, he died in 1971
1989 – Fall of the Berlin Wall, as you mentioned. And also a turning point in the life of a KGB officer based in Dresden, who went on to greater power in modern-day Russia.
2007 – Death of former Russian president Yeltsin (he had resigned in 1999/2000).

Every alternate occurrence seems to be either a (violet and chaotic) change of government (1881, 1917, 1953, 1989t, 2025?) or the death of a former head of state/government (1936-given how many people Stalin had executed, not impossible-, 1971, 2007, etc). Based on the trend, I would guess that somebody formerly in power died in 1899, but can’t find anything on Wikipedia.

Keir Starmer – one step forward, two back ++ Rachel Reeves, Andy Burnham etc ++ Starmer biography/exploring the enigma

Keir Starmer, the UK Opposition leader, who should be rights be delirious with joy, benefitting from government stumbles and Tory divisions, has tripped into yet another sinkhole over Israel-Palestine and anti-Semitism. Labour polls are dropping and his policies are no clearer than they were, apart from some abrupt U-turns on green hopes. Backroom Svengalis, Blair and Mandelson, have been tarnished in the Post Office Fujitsu scandal.

  His personal chart, 2 September 1962 has tr Saturn squashing his confidence as it is conjunct his Jupiter and opposition his Sun Pluto at the moment. He will lurch through more tensions in coming months with only one phase of better luck in the second half of May and again late December to late March 2025. Though he has an ominous, undermining SA Sun Pluto conjunct his Neptune in that late year early 2025 period as well depending on his birth time and worse in 2026 with a dead-halt SA Mars conjunct his Sun Pluto.

  His Leadership chart, 4 April 2020 10.45am is facing grinding difficulties and impossible challenges with tr Pluto conjunct the Saturn and then Mars/Saturn midpoint and then Mars over the next three years – which looks like a meltdown.

  The Labour Party, 12 February 1906 chart, will be jangled by tr Uranus square the Sun Venus in late April/early May; with some luck from tr Uranus conjunct the Jupiter in August/September 2024 and May 2025.

  The LP 27 February 1900 chart is doused in Saturnine glooms through this year and next.

  A pity – I had high hopes for him when he came in. Maybe he doesn’t have the charisma to be a political leader or has just got stuck in an impossible situation.

 ADD ON: A quick skip some of the front bench and others (without birth times).

  Rachel Reeves, a Sun Mars in Aquarius square Uranus, is in for a turbulent phase of change from now onwards into early 2025 with tr Uranus shaking up her life. Tr Pluot opposition her Jupiter this year and next could suggest changes in her favour and she’ll certainly be lucky and successful – with a hint of more in 2025 when her SA Jupiter is conjunct her North Node (= a favourable moment in her destiny).

 Andy Burnham is also boosted by tr Pluto square his Jupiter in Scorpio in 2025/26. Though he’ll need to push against resistance in 2025.

Angela Raynor is very up and down this year and has some lucky breaks in 2025 – her moment of real triumph comes in 2030.

Jeremy Corbyn is not giving up with tr Pluto conjunct his Jupiter in Aquarius in 2024/25 but not looking hopeful on other fronts especially into 2025/26.

 John McDonnell ditto – a blip of a triumph this August and in spring of 2025 but generally not in a progressive phase.

George Galloway – one opportunistic push in 2025 but on the whole going nowhere for several years.

ADD ON:  The enigma that is Keir Starmer is explored in a biography by Tom Baldwin. He had a traumatic childhood with a mother in debilitating pain from an auto-immune disorder, a cold, distant, judgemental, fanatical father, described as having oppressive eccentricities; and a hospitalised brother with learning difficulties.

  ‘It is striking that Baldwin opens his account with an admission that he still finds Starmer difficult to fathom.’ When selected as a parliamentary candidate Starmer says: “I felt I was self-promoting and I find that really uncomfortable.”

  His father ignored his children in his devotion to his wife but after his death Keir found a scrapbook of every newspaper story about his career as human rights lawyer and Director of Public Prosecutions then politician.

 “When he finishes for the day, he goes home to his family or see his old friends,” Chris Ward, Starmer’s former chief of staff, tells Baldwin. “He’s just not a normal politician.” Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader, likens him to a health and safety inspector — motivated less by ego than by an almost self-defeating seriousness.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/keir-starmer-by-tom-baldwin-review-this-biography-should-be-called-nightmares-from-my-father-087q7xpp3

Robert Badinter – shining a light into darkness + R J Lifton, Scott Peck, Simon Weisenthal ++ more on Scott Peck

Robert Badinter has died, the former French justice minister, who went up against considerable public opposition to ban capital punishment in 1981, which was then still carried out by guillotine. Emmanuel Macron said he had been the “moral conscience” of the nation. He also scrapped a law that discriminated against same-sex relationships on the age of consent; and fought for prison reform.

  He was born 30 March 1928 6am Paris, France with immigrant parents from Moldova, with his Jewish father deported from Lyon in 1943 and killed in the gas chambers in Poland, along with many of his other relatives. He and his mother sheltered in the French Alps for the rest of the war. In 1983, he succeeded in making Bolivia extradite to France Klaus Barbie, “the butcher of Lyon”,  a former Gestapo chief, the Nazis’ secret police. He was put on trial for crimes against humanity and sentenced to life imprisonment in a landmark case during which Holocaust survivors took the stand for the first time in France.

 Robert Badinter had a 12th house Aries Sun conjunct Jupiter and Uranus; with his Sun Jupiter in a confident square to Pluto in his 4th. His Jupiter and widely his Sun were trine a knowledgeable Saturn in Sagittarius in the 9th house ruling legal affairs. He also had a notable Mars in Aquarius opposition Neptune which can be inspirational and sat across the France chart’s revolutionary (and bloodthirsty) Pluto in Leo opposition Uranus in Aquarius square Mars in Scorpio. He would have a softening effect on France’s more murderous tendencies.

 His ban-the-guillotine legislation came in as the tr Jupiter Saturn conjunction in Libra was in place.

 What motivated him apart from his difficult and suppressed childhood with Pluto in his 4th would be his Chiron in his 1st in Taurus. Melanie Rhinehart is eloquent about Chiron in the 1st – making for a sense of not quite having the right to exist, knowing what it is to be powerless, inducing self-sufficiency and a pioneering quality (like Albert Schweitzer). His childhood experiences were his springboard.

 His 17th harmonic – leaving a legacy for future generations – was notable with Jupiter opposition Mercury square Sun opposition Neptune Pluto. He left his mark.

A quick look at others who tried to shine a light on the darkness of the human condition.

Robert Jay Lifton, May 16, 1926, New York, an American psychiatrist and author of studies of the psychological causes and effects of wars and political violence. Death in Life: Survivors of Hiroshima ; Home from the War: Vietnam Veterans—Neither Victims nor Executioners; and The Nazi Doctors: Medical Killing and the Psychology of Genocide.

 He has a Taurus Sun conjunct Algol opposition Saturn in Scorpio square Jupiter in Aquarius opposition Neptune. A Fixed Grand Square gives him endurance. Saturn Neptune – hope for a better society. Saturn in Scorpio – obsessive. Jupiter in Aquarius – broadminded. He had his Chiron in last degree Aries, somewhat similar to Badinter’s 1st house Chiron.

M Scott Peck, 22 May 1936 New York author of People of the Lie about evil, who started life as an army psychiatrist is a Sun, Mars Mercury in Gemini with Neptune in Virgo opposition Saturn in Pisces; with his Jupiter on the focal point of a yod inconjunct Pluto sextile Venus in Taurus. Such a Jupiter can bring about positive social change though need to watch a tendency to over confidence.

  One of his views was that people who are evil attack others rather than face their own failures.  His best known book The Road Less Travelled sold 10 million copies.

 Simon Weisenthal, 31 December 1908 11.30pm Bucas, Ukraine, a Jewish Austrian Holocaust survivor, Nazi hunter, and writer who survived in various concentration camps for four years and after the war, dedicated his life to tracking down fugitive Nazi war criminals so that they could be brought to trial.

 He had a 4th house Capricorn Sun, Mercury, Uranus trine Jupiter (slightly similar to Badinter) opposition Neptune in Virgo and his Sun square Saturn. He had an influential Pluto on his Midheaven inconjunct Mars in Scorpio which was opposition Algol.  His Chiron in Aquarius would make him seek out likeminded others to fight for his people (his soul tribe) and his collective ideal would be strong.

  What stands out for me about these disparate charts is that they are all strong in idealistic Neptune and optimistic Jupiter. Not that Neptune is always saintly, it can go the other way. Ditto Jupiter. But they clearly hooked into the better end of both.

   Aiming to light a path into the heart of darkness, while admirable at one level can be perilous since the darkness is corrosive.  The siren call of evil can eventually contaminate and corrupt if it doesn’t drown the individual.  

Add on:  Scott Peck for all his wise words had a chaotic personal life, conducting multiple affairs and estranged from two of his three children. He had a stellium in Gemini including his Sun and maybe Moon, a sign notorious for its wandering habits amongst the male of the species. He also had Neptune in Virgo opposition Saturn in Pisces square Jupiter in Sagittarius perhaps in opposition to his Moon – so he had an overdose of Mutable signs. This makes for extreme restlessness, a tendency to scatter his attention and interests and be uncertain of his commitments in close relationships. His Venus in indulgent Taurus was also on the midpoint of Saturn trine Pluto which arguably gave him a cold streak when it came to affection. His Venus was also sextile Pluto inconjunct Jupiter which would allow him to have a considerable social impact but also gives a tendency to arrogance/over confidence. A good/great mind but not always a brilliant human being.

Steve Wright – zany outside, sad inside

The unexpected death of hugely successful BBC radio personality and DJ Steve Wright has brought an outpouring of accolades about his talent and warmth.  He won huge audiences with his ‘zoo-crew’ and a gallery of characters played by Wright himself, notably Mr Angry, ranting on the phone from Purley. He was zany, mischievous and highly entertaining. Yet despite it all his friend Jeremy Vine writes: ‘The great mystery of Steve was that the three hours of radio was the only time when he showed off. You would never pick him out of a bus queue. He avoided showbiz parties. He was humble, even shy. He undercut all his own achievements. I wonder if, as a colleague has recently offered, he had made it his mission to spread joy to others because he had known sadness himself.’ Even his close friends knew little about how he spent his time outside his studio.

 He was certainly obsessive about his work, flying to New York, before the internet, to spend the weekend in his hotel room listening to US radio shows. His preparation and work ethic meant he would arrive at 9am for an on-air start at three.

  After his wife suddenly left him he became known as an eccentric loner, sleeping during the week in a small flat round the corner from Broadcasting House and living meagrely, despite a reported salary in excess of £500,000, on a diet of microwave TV dinners, mini bottles of white wine, crisps and chocolates. Over the years he struggled to control his weight, which at times ballooned to 18 stone.

  He was born 26 August 1954 Greenwich, England, no birth time, and was a quiet, unacademic child who always wanted to go into entertainment, had a show while still at school, and joined the BBC in the gramophone library in the early 1970s. He moved around between the BBC and other outlets settling in two decades ago to Radio 2’s afternoon slot where he remained until moved in 2022.

  He had a chart divided into two halves. His workaholic, perfectionist and communicative Virgo Sun and Mercury were trine Mars in Capricorn and sextile an obsessively conscientious Saturn in Scorpio. That would make him determined but not exactly light-hearted. His mischievous, oddball streak came from a lucky Jupiter Uranus in Cancer in a square to a creative, musical and kindly Neptune Venus in Libra. His emotional life would be troubled with Venus Neptune Uranus and his Leo Moon probably square Saturn.

  His Sun and Pluto fell in the BBC’s 4th house with his Sun opposition the BBC’s 10th house Uranus so it would be a strong though not always easy connection and his musical Venus Neptune and Saturn fell in the BBC’s entertaining 5th house.

 The relationship chart has a successful Grand Trine/Kite of Uranus trine Neptune Jupiter trine Mars, with Uranus opposition Venus.

  When Steve Wright’s afternoon show was summarily moved by the BBC, which according to friends devastated him, tr Saturn in Aquarius was square his Pluto, and tr Pluto was opposition his Uranus so it would represent a considerable upheaval. His Solar Arc Neptune was also conjunct his Mars bringing a sense of failure. Plus tr Pluto square his Mars/Pluto midpoint which would feel like a catastrophic blow.  With his entire workaholic life focused on his show he was always going to be in trouble when events moved him on.

  Like many a zany comedian his quirkiness hid a good deal of inner desolation.   

Space and other disasters – high risk harmonics

The Space Shuttle That Fell to Earth is a three part documentary that marks the anniversary of the Columbia disaster, when the US space shuttle disintegrated on the return journey of its 28th mission, killing all seven astronauts on board. There are interviews with family and friends of the lost cosmonauts and an examination of what went wrong, unpicking the failures of Nasa.

 The shuttle took off on 16 January 2003 at 9.39am Orlando, Florida and disintegrated on 1 February 2003 at 8.59am EST over Texas and Louisiana.  Both take off and descent took place under the unyielding, can-be-destructive Saturn opposition Pluto which for take off and disintegration was square the Pisces Ascendant. This Saturn Pluto opposition was around for 9/11, the Afghanistan and Iraq wars. On the take off chart there was also an ominous Mars in last degree Scorpio square Uranus and Sun conjunct the fixed star Procyon (= can raise to great heights and bring crashing down). When the crash occurred the Sun had moved to conjunct the Neptune and was moving to oppose the overly optimistic Jupiter in Leo.

  As to be expected the Columbia Disaster chart has a high-risk/destructive 16th harmonic with the Sun linked to Mars and Pluto; and both Mars and Pluto on the focal points of yods. The 18th harmonic was also notably super-stressed and dangerous with Mars opposition Pluto.

 The take off chart had similarly Mars, Pluto heavy aspects on its 16th and 32nd harmonic.  

  The Challenger disaster of 28 January 1986 when a shuttle exploded on take off killing all on board occurred at 11.38am off Cape Canaveral, Florida. Mars in late Scorpio was opposition Algol and the Sun was square Pluto. Again the 16th and 32nd Harmonic were marked. Even more so was the 18th harmonic with a fearsome Mars Pluto opposition Saturn which has associations with ‘fires and explosion’ in numerology.  

  Looking at other disasters: Both 9/11 and the Hiroshima bomb had marked 16H, 18H and 32H harmonic charts.

 The Titanic sinking is interesting – from a ghoulish point of view. In that the hull-laying chart is almost the most  indicative of what is to come, 31 March 1909. It had a Mars Uranus conjunction which had moved to exact by Solar Arc direction over the sinking. With a catastrophe and accident prone 16th harmonic with Mars linked to Saturn, Pluto.  The chart of the sinking itself 14 April 1912 11.40pm is also indicative of being at risk of sudden violent calamities. At that point tr Neptune had moved to cross over the Mars Uranus conjunction which suggests panic and failure.

 Both charts had marked 16H, 18H, and 32H charts. And what is a fascinating sidelight they both had strong 10th harmonics  = rise and fall, hinting at over-confidence and too much stress being put on appearances.

  After-the-event accidents are interesting from an astrological viewpoint; but only the Titanic disaster had a hope of being prevented if the astrology had been understood. Space Shuttles tend not to have hull-laying moments so only the take off is available.