Paul Mazursky obituary
Actor, screenwriter and director whose films were a barometer for the 'me decade'As a director and screenwriter, Paul Mazursky, who has died aged 84, was middle America's most successful interpreter of...
View ArticleJohnnie Gray obituary
When the bandleader Ted Heath was looking for a saxophonist for his new big band in 1945, he found my friend Johnnie Gray. Johnnie, who has died aged 94, stayed with the radio favourites for four...
View ArticleJohn Michael Ingram obituary
Menswear designer whose refined tailoring made his clothes and shops a favourite of 1960s modsJohn Michael Ingram, who has died aged 83, was the least flamboyant of the designers who created the male...
View ArticleWilfrid King obituary
I first met Wilfrid King, who has died aged 86, when he was a young teacher at the Sheffield School for the Blind, the boarding school that I attended from the tender age of four. Wilf and his wife,...
View ArticleDavid Robinson obituary
My friend David Robinson, a Labour councillor in Chester, who has died of heart failure aged 67, was a shining example of a local politician who dedicated his life to public service, driven by a fierce...
View ArticleLetter: Eli Wallach on Book at Bedtime
I saw The Good, the Bad and the Ugly as a teenager, and it remains my favourite film. In the early 1990s, Eli Wallach read Joseph Mitchell's book McSorley's Wonderful Saloon on BBC Radio 4's Book at...
View ArticleLouis Zamperini obituary
US athlete who survived torture in Japanese prison camps and became the subject of Laura Hillenbrand's biography UnbrokenA star runner, war hero, and survivor of 47 days at sea in a rubber raft and two...
View ArticleBill Pashley obituary
My friend Bill Pashley, who has died aged 80, was a man who saw the funny side of almost everything, especially the debilitating illnesses that scarred his last years. For someone who had no religious...
View ArticleNick FitzGerald obituary
My father-in-law Nick FitzGerald, who has died aged 74, made his mark in the world of advertising by founding his own agency, Pincus Vidler Arthur FitzGerald, and winning clients including Fiat, Mary...
View ArticleRichard Mellon Scaife obituary
Reclusive billionaire and conservative philanthropist who bankrolled rightwing attempts to discredit Bill and Hillary ClintonThe resurgence of rightwing conservatism in America in the last quarter of...
View ArticleEduard Shevardnadze obituary
President of Georgia and Soviet foreign minister who promoted perestroika during Mikhail Gorbachev's time in powerEduard Shevardnadze, who has died aged 86, deserves to go down in history as one of the...
View ArticleAppreciation: Mary Rodgers's Freaky Friday made adolescence seem cool
Freaky Friday by Mary Rodgers, published in the US in 1972 and the UK in 1973, was one of several American children's books of the time that were pounced on with glee by UK readers. The appeal of these...
View ArticleAlfredo Di Stéfano obituary
Centre-forward of the all-conquering Real Madrid football team of the 1950s, which won five European Cups in a rowAlfredo Di Stéfano, who has died aged 88, was the inspirational leader of the Real...
View ArticlePaul Horn obituary
Flautist, composer and creator of new age music who studied Transcendental Meditation with the BeatlesJazz musicians know a lot about fine timing, but those skills do not usually extend to sensing what...
View ArticleLetter: Gerard Benson asked for paper and pen and wrote a poem on the spot
In the late 1960s and 70s, when the Barrow Poets toured the US and Canada four times under the auspices of the impresario Sol Hurok, Gerard Benson was a vibrant and sometimes flamboyant performer. I...
View ArticleArthur Jerrom obituary
My father-in-law, Arthur Jerrom, who has died aged 86, was Slim Whitman's favourite steel guitarist and played with the American country singer during the 1960s under the stage name Jerry West. Whitman...
View ArticleBrian Priestman obituary
My father, Brian Priestman, who has died aged 87, was a conductor with a worldwide reputation. Having started his career in Britain, he went on to work with orchestras across the US, and had a highly...
View ArticleKathy Stobart obituary
Jazz saxophonist praised for her 'huge, booming sound' and commanding presenceThe saxophonist Kathy Stobart, who has died aged 89, was one of the finest jazz soloists of her generation. "Always...
View ArticleIan Potts obituary
My friend Ian Potts, who has died aged 78, was both an accomplished watercolour painter and a brilliant art school lecturer and administrator. From 1963 until he retired in 1995, Ian was the linchpin...
View ArticlePN Furbank obituary
Literary scholar and teacher who wrote acclaimed biographies of EM Forster and DiderotThe books of the literary scholar and teacher PN Furbank, known to friends as Nick, who has died aged 94, reflected...
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