ABSENT FRIENDS . . .

 

Remembering those we have lost this year

The Pogues - Shane MacGowan and Kirsty MacColl - A Fairy Tale of New York

plus a couple we’d rather forget!!

“The worst sin towards our fellow creatures is not to hate them but to be indifferent to them: that's the essence of inhumanity.”

— George Bernard Shaw, “The Devil's Disciple”

Jeff Beck (musician)

One of the greatest guitarist in the world . . . EVER!

Robbie Robertson (singer songwriter band member and film music composer)

THE BAND - only Garth (Hudson) left now from one of the seminal groups of the counter culture and Bob Dylan’s backing band from the beginnings of time itself

Tom Verlaine (singer songwriter)

Denny Laine (singer songwriter)

Bernie Marsden (musician)

Here with my dear old friend and school mate Johnny Marter (ALASKA) on the right

David Crosby(Singer)

Gordon Lightfoot (singer songwriter)

Huey Piano Smith (singer composer songwriter pianist)

Jean Knight (singer) 

Steve Mackay (musician and bandmember Pulp:bass)

Andy Rourke (musician and bandmember The Smiths:bass)

Andy Rourke was a member of the Facebook group for Smiths obsessives called "There Is A Light That Never Goes Out”. Popbitch

Rudolph Isley (band member and singer)

Norah Forster (Mrs Johnny Rotten)

John Lydon (Johnny Rotten) lost his beloved wife of over 40 years

Cindy Williams (actor- Laverne and Shirley)

Miss Williams, best known for her role as Shirley on Laverne & Shirley

Cindy Williams first became interested in acting during high school, where she actually performed with Sally Field. After graduation, she attended L.A. City College where she majored in Theater Arts. After college, she landed her first television roles on Room 222, Nanny and the Professor and Love, American Style. She would go on to co-star with Ron Howard, Richard Dreyfuss and Harrison Ford in American Graffiti directed by George Lucas, a low-budget film that went on to become a box office smash and film classic.

Cynthia Jane Williams died January 25, 2023 at the age of 75.

Steve Harwell (musician - Smash Mouth vocalist)

Linda Lewis (singer)

Tina Turner (singer)

Sinead O’Connor (singer)

"Sinead O'Connor's nickname for Prince was "Ol' Fluffy Cuffs”. POPBITCH

Shane MacGowan (singer songwriter)

Shirley Ann Field (actor)

Tony Bennett (singer)

Harry Belafonte (singer activist)

Barrett Strong (singer songwriter)

Wayne Shorter (jazz musician)

Carla Bley (jazz musician)

Ahmad Jamal (paints)

Astrid Gilberto (singer)

Burt Bacharach (songwriter composer)

Lisa Marie Presley (daughter of Elvis Presley)

Julian Sands (actor)

UPDATE And as visitor steVe informs us, we lost Tommy Smothers of the Smother’s Brothers this week too (Boxing day) - a true pioneer of left field comedy and also an extraordinary muso in his own right, his almost not quite there lovable ‘unplugged' schtick in his comedy routine came as a revelation to me, a mere Brit, when I finally caught up with him across the pond as we say. One of the funniest men . . . we will not see his like again

for steVe - The Smothers Bros on Letterman!

Murray Melvin (Taste of Honey) (actor)© Cecil Beaton Archive / Condé Nast

Hayden Gwynne (actor)

Sylvia Syms (actor)

George Allegiah (news reader)

Paul Reubens (Pee Wee Herman) (comic actor)

Michael Parkinson (journalist talk show host)

Mike Yarwood (impressionist comedian)

Matthew Perry

"Matthew Perry didn't want to be remembered just as Chandler off of Friends – so to honour that wish, we'll remind you that he was also responsible for one of the great late-night talkshow anecdotes too. 

One afternoon, alone in his home, Matthew decided he wanted to spend a bit of quality time with himself, so fired up a dirty movie on his home entertainment system. Intending on treating himself to the full luxury experience, he lingered over it, spending a good half-hour enjoying the build up – before throwing himself into it for a really mucky orgy scene. 

After he had finished up, he tried to turn his TV off but found he couldn't. The best he could do was turn the volume down. But when the sound display read 00 he swore he could still hear sex noises coming from somewhere. 

It was another couple of minutes before he remembered that the previous night he'd been outside in his garden, relaxing with a glass of wine, piping music through his outdoor speakers. Speakers which were still connected – and had been blasting out porn to his neighbours around the San Fernando Valley at full pelt.” Popbitch

Jane Birkin (actor singer)

Paul O’Grady (television personality comedic drag actor)

A lot of the tributes to Paul O'Grady made much of his trailblazing work as a drag artist, his dedication to the LGBT community, his love for animals and his intergenerational appeal – but he was also one of the great lash hounds of his era. Possibly of all time. 

To give you a top-tier testimonial: Paul was once introduced to Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones (through their mutual friend, Cilla Black). To our knowledge, there is no written record of the carnage that ensued but Paul put the band through their paces to such an extent that Mick Jagger has since said that the Rolling Stones have just three things they need to be kept away from... 

"Drugs, booze and Lily Savage.” Popbitch

Fay Weldon (writer)

Andre Breuer (actor)

Jimmy Buffet (singer songwriter)

"Michael Gambon was once invited as a guest of honour, alongside Princess Margaret, to some fancy toff's house for a gargantuan slap-up dinner. There, guests were treated to 13 individual courses – with a different wine pairing for each one. 

After such an extravagantly indulgent binge, Gambon began to feel a little queasy. Figuring (wisely) that he might not make it through his host's massive house before he chucked his guts, he got up and staggered towards the fireplace to spew there instead. 

His host, spying an impending disaster with his very valuable antique hearth rug, dashed to intercept. He effectively rugby tackled poor Gambon out of the rug's way – causing Gambon to throw up right there on the spot – resulting in the pair of them landing on the floor in a heap of vomit and tuxedo. 

Throughout it all, Princess Margaret didn't bat an eyelid.” Popbitch

Michael Gambon (actor)

Barry Humphries (comedian)

Watch this . . . . . . .Sir Les at his er . . . . peak?!

Jerry Springer (TV show iconoclast)

"I just hope hell isn't that hot because I burn real easy" – Jerry Springer 

Robert Blake (actor)

Kenneth Anger (author)

Alan Arkin (actor)

Glenda Jackson (actor /MP)

It is sometimes easy to forget how beautiful Glenda Jackson was and particularly how brilliantly clever too

 A force to be reckoned with always, Oliver Reed said when starring in Women In Love alongside her, that acting with her was like being run over by a small Bedford truck!

Richard Roundtree (actor)

Cormac McCarthy (writer)

Treat Williams (actor)

Martin Amis (author)

"The British Library gift shop used to sell a black and white postcard of a young Martin Amis. Their biggest customer? Martin Amis – who bought a huge stack of them." Popbitch

Milan Kundera (author)

Mary Quant  (fashion designer)

Ryan O’Neal (actor)

Bobby Charlton (footballer)

 Betty Boothroyd (actor and Speaker of The House)

Gina Lollabrigida (actor)

Raquel Welch (actor)

"RIP Raquel Welch: Her episode of the Muppet Show is what Ryan Gosling says inspired him to become an actor.” Popbitch

John Motson (sport commentator)

Paco Rabanne (fashio designer - perfumier)

Piper Laurie (actor)

David McCallum (actor)

Stella Stevens (actor)

Mohamed Al Fayad (store owner)

Jean Boht (actor)

Joss Ackland (actor)

Alistair Darling (Labour Politician)

Benjamin Zephaniah - No Problem

I am not de problem

But I bear de brunt

Of the silly playground taunts

An racist stunts,

I am not de problem

I am born academic

But dey got me on de run

Now im a branded athletic

I am not de problem

If yu give I a chance

I can teach yu of Timbuktu

I can do more dan dance

I am not de problem

I greet yu wid a smile

Yu put me in a pigeon hole

But i am versatile

These conditions may affect me

As I get older,

An I am positively sure

I have no chips on my shoulders,

Black is not de problem

Mother country get it right

An juss fe de record,

Sum of me best friends are white.

Benjamin Zephaniah 

Bridget Forsyth (actor) comedienne from The Likely Lads to modern day classics too

The Likely Lads' Bob And Thelma

and more . . . a great actor lost in Tom Wilkinson

starred in many favourites and one I will watch over and over again with Andrew Scott and the breathtaking Jessica Brown- Findlay in This Beautiful Fantastic (2016) and in many great films from The Grand Budapest The Best Exotic (about hotels!) Batman Begins, to The Full Monty. . .  to In the Bedroom opposite Sissy Spacek! We have lost a great actor

Bubbling under (hell reference?!)

Rolf Harris (entertainer and convicted paedophile)

Henry Kissinger (mass murdering politician)

Silvio Berlusconi (Italian politician bunga-bunga!)

"As brazen as many modern politicians can be, Silvio Berlusconi really was in a league of his own. Gordon Brown tells a story about how he was once approached at a G20 meeting by Berlusconi, who singled him out specifically to ask a very important question. 

Something related to the catastrophic global economic downturn? Seeking advice on how to take over from a Prime Minister who had lost the trust of the nation?” Popbitch 

Erm, no. Berlusconi wanted to know if Brown could get him Naomi Campbell's phone number.

for whom we bring DEAD FLOWERS 

(The Stones at the Marquee Club 1971)