Let’s hear it for the killer anecdote
From The Times obituary for Walter Walsh: Walter Walsh killed people for a living. He was exceptionally good at it. But unlike many in his line of work, he never shot anyone who didn’t need shooting. Both as an FBI agent in the 1930s and as a marine officer during the Second World War, he comported […]
Zombied
The Birmingham Post reports the takeover by Laurel of 2 undertakers, WH Scott and Earl & Co. Scott’s is a business with no website but masses of barnacles heritage and a noble lineage stretching back over five generations. We trust that the present generation, the one that brought the proud dynasty to an end by cashing in the family silver, […]
Celebrating transition with ritual
Rituals for Our Lives A Rites of Passage Autumn School led by Gilly Adams and Sue Gill Monday, September 29th – Friday, October 3rd 2014 Halsway Manor, National Centre for the Folk Arts, Halsway Lane, Nr. Crowcombe, Somerset TA4 4BD It takes courage to mark key moments of change in our lives, especially if they […]
Why go there?
“If we want the deaths our lives deserve, we need to start talking about it,” advises a Times leader today. Yes, it’s Dying Matters Awareness week and all Funeralworld is a-flutter with wheezes to “start the conversation” and encourage people to make a will, jot down their end-of-life wishes and their funeral wishes, even […]
Doing them justice
Over on the Mindfulness and Mortality blog, in a discussion about funeral eulogies, Gloriamundi asks a good question: “Why do we seem to feel the need to sum up a life and pass judgement on it?” He goes on: “The torrent of unqualified praise that falls on someone who has just died is an expression […]
Where to be
Dying Matters Awareness Week kicks off next Monday. Over at DeadSocial, James Norris is getting his awareness-raising in early. He’s holding another of his pop-up shops — venue: 69 Camden High Street, London. On Tuesday, there was an art exhibition. Yesterday, the Natural Death Centre did its thing — lots of good stuff […]
Many Flowers in Carshalton (part 2)
Another day in the life of the Vintage Lorry Hearse. Often David Hall, of Vintage Lorry Funerals, is asked what happens if it rains during a funeral. Although under the deck of the 1950 Leyland Beaver there is a slide out drawer with a purpose built translucent sheet, this has been used only once in […]
No-win
“In the UK, the size and number of cremators at a crematorium are selected to enable the ‘duty’ to be accomplished within a normal working day and so the cremator is used for about 8 hours per day and then shut down until the next day. This is not an energy-efficient way of working, and […]
A new choice of funeral venue for bereaved of Plymouth
Devonport’s historic Guildhall is to be offered as a venue for funerals. Built in 1822, the Grade 1 listed building has, over the years, served as a town hall, magistrates court, library and even a mortuary. It is now a community hub which hosts exhibitions, community group activities, events, weddings and conferences. The initiative has been […]
