Right, that’s your lot
As 2013 totters down the pub for a festive pint, it’s time for us to hang up our trocar and call it a day. A big thank you to all our readers. An even bigger thank you to all our guest bloggers; you keep us fresh and unpredictable. Biggest thanks of all to Richard […]
In memory of England’s slaves
The arrival of slave trading ships at Bristol’s port helped make the city rich in the 18th century. But there are few memorials to the thousands of Africans put to work around Britain in that century. It was, therefore, interesting to learn that the modern Pero’s Bridge at Bristol Harbour is named after the slave of […]
Can grief be assuaged by a nice big car?
Extract from Therapy, Legitimation or Both: Funeral Directors and the Grief Process by Ivan Emke (2003): One example of a product which is “sold” to funeral consumers is funeral automobiles. The sleek automobiles have become standard fare in funeral processions, but one can inquire about the function of these products. Do they help the families in their grieving? […]
Raising money in memory
The sun that bids us rest is waking Our brethren ’neath the western sky The words of the well-known hymn put us in mind of our undertakerly comrades, slow adopters in everything — justly cautious of novelty. In the last year there’s been a lot of waking up to the benefits of online charity fundraising […]
Don’t stop all the clocks
Posted by Baggaman Yesterday Quokkagirl had a go at crappy crematoria. Fair do’s. But it’s not all bad. Take the time limit. Is that a restraint or a constraint? A restraint is bad, something to be got round. A constraint is good. The best art, literature and music are inspired by self-imposed constraints. The haiku, […]
Crème de la crem
A rant by Quokkagirl Imagine if you will – a member of the mourning congregation spends the funeral ceremony of a dear 100 year old friend, listening intently to me …..….awaiting his cue. When the cue comes, he leaves his role as a mourner to fiddle with his mp3 player (which he’d had to go […]
The sacred role of the embalmer
“In an age when the materialistic threatens to undo the mystical, there is place for him who in that hour of deepest sorrow is able, by his art, his compassion, his wisdom and knowledge, indeed, by his very presence, to minister alike to the body bereft of soul and to those loved ones who need […]
Time the law caught up with the unmarried bereaved?
Joe Wilkins was killed by a car while out cycling. The motorist responsible admitted causing death by dangerous driving. In England, under the terms of the Fatal Accidents Act, a spouse, civil partner or the parents of a minor killed in an accident caused by the negligence of breach of duty of another are eligible […]
Warhol inspires from beyond the grave
Posted by Richard Rawlinson As the big chill looms in the UK, it’s already snowing in Philadelphia. I know this as I’ve stumbled across a Facebook page dedicated to Andy Warhol’s grave in a Pittsburgh cemetery. Here. It seems the page is updated daily with images taken by fans of the pop artist who visit the […]
Happy birthday to you!
Trawling through a stack of local papers of a weary Friday afternoon, the GFG’s gannet-eyed media monitoring team came across some advertorial in the Ipswich Star which gladdened their eyes. It was half a page of advertorial celebrating the first birthday of GM Taylor, Independent Funeral Director. They very much liked its directness and transparency. […]
