Tuesday 27 October 2015

Death of a minor literary man

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The author of the Confessions [of a Window-Cleaner, etc.] series was a Cambridge man. Who knew? Christopher Wood died at the same time as Michael Meacher, Lisa Jardine and Maureen O'Hara, in what the headmaster in Alan Bennett's 'Forty Years On' (John Gielgud in the original version, Paul Eddington in the one I saw) called 
'the magnificent equality of death'. 
Michael Meacher's obituary was as dull as the man. Maureen O'Hara's I haven't read but she probably had more sex than Mr. Meacher - possibly more than the window cleaner for aught I know.

Henri de Montherlant wrote about all the people who lead utterly different lives and who die at the same moment. Did he make an analogy with birds suddenly migrating to the other side of the world? I don't think he did and if not I am doing so.

3 comments:

  1. quite outrageously mean comment about Michael Meacher. He was one of the most "decent" and thoughtful of British politicians which - during a period when they have been rightly excoriated for their moral turpitudes - should count as a huge reason for regret about his sudden passing.......Think more carefully in future before using such adjectives - even better - "bite your tongue"

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    1. I am sorry to have offended you but I only said he was dull. I could have been very harsh indeed about him - he was 'Tony Benn's vicar on earth' after 1983 which was a very bad thing indeed to be. He was a force for ill throughout his political career, until I came here in the late 1990s when I lost sight of him and I hope he improved but I doubt it. Appallingly he nominated Corbyn for leader this year and wanted him to win. I met Michael Meacher.once - he was a nice man.
      The only thing I know to his credit is that in the 1980s he wanted us to leave the EEC but he sat happily in Mr Blair's cabinet while huge powers were irrevocably given away to the EU.

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