Thought for the day

Even psychopaths have emotions
Well then again maybe they don’t

Richard Ramirez

Gonna make the violet more violent

Ted Bundy's Last Interview
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My friend John once said 'The problem with pornography is that it is prohibitivley expensive!' Feminist Angela Dworkin famously stated  'pornography is the theory and rape is the practice', in the above clip excuted serial killer Ted Bundy discusses his thoughts on the subject.

Anyone who ever loved could look at me and know that I loved you

All chances pass me like dream,
I neither sing nor pray;
and thou art like the poisonous tree
that stole my life away.

Love & Hate , Elizabeth Siddal

I saw Lizzie’s grave at Highgate Cemetery at the weekend. She is often referred to as the first supermodel as she was the muse and model to the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood painters and later the wife of painter and poet Dante Rossetti. Dante apparently drove her half crazy with his philandering ways and having been addicted to Laudanum for a number of years she finally took an overdose and died 1862. Dante was so full of grief (GUILT) that he buried a new manuscript of his poetry in the coffin of his lost love. Unfortunately they didn’t have photocopiers in the 1860’s and 6 years later when he hit a creative dry spell he appealed to the home office for permission to dig them back up. One moon lit night (like tonight) his lawyer and a team of workmen went to Highgate and by the light of a fire they exhumed Elizabeth and retrieved the book of poems while Dante stayed on terra firma a few miles south of the scene. His officer told him that when they opened the coffin they saw that Lizzie was as beautiful in death as in life and that her famous auburn hair had grown to fill the coffin.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

I spent yesterday afternoon eating sweet little black cherries picked from trees in Tower Hamlets Cemetery. More than half a million people lie in the over grown 36 acre grounds, many in mass graves reflecting the poverty of the area. Lots of stories of sailors and rope makers, much of the grandeur is lost to bad decisions made by various London councils. The lady who showed us around was lovely though she told us how Tower Hamlets council had decided to level the cemetery and make it into a park until locals protested. The chapel where services were once held has been demolished leaving no access to the catacombs below. Many who lay here were lost to Britain’s two world wars, victims of The Blitz and the Bethnal Green tube disaster, soldiers and sailors who fell abroad were brought back to rest in the East End where their lives had begun. The sense of East End pride was clear in the ladies patriotism – she laughed as she discussed recent proposal to reopen the ground for use by local Muslims, apparently to avoid the problem of being buried on top of another body which is against religious tradition the councillor were suggesting squeezing new graves in between the old ones. When we came to one part of the cemetery she visibly stiffened and accelerated ‘German’s – we don’t bother about them!’

I go to sleep and imagine that you're here with me

I went to Highgate cemetery this Sunday and I think it might possibly be the most beautiful place in London. You have to take the tour if you want to see the divine West Cemetery but its very interesting and worthwhile to do so. It really is the most magical, exquisite, fairy tale, Gothic graveyard ever. Sadly the catacombs are far less romantic than those at Kensal Green as they are made up of just one recessed tunnel that runs underneath the cemetery wall, they have a slightly abandoned wine cellar feel to them and they are actually on ground level which I didn't like.   Now I am conflicted (in death as in life) as I would love to be interred in a catacomb at Kensal Green but if I were to be buried in the ground I would want to be buried at Highgate West.


Later we went over to the more modern Eastern burial ground to pay our respects to Malcolm McClaren. Most of the visitors were busy having their picture taken by the huge Karl Marx statue but we don’t agree with communism, ( Richard works in fashion and I don’t like being told what to do) so we didn’t bother with that. We walked past Jeremy Beadle (who knew??) and then Patrick Caulfield’s witty headstone that just says DEAD. Richard asked the attendant how much it would cost us to be buried there. He looked a bit suspicious at first but after pause said ‘four figures’ , then ‘ and we don’t take advance bookings you have to be dead or at least terminal.....’

Now I lay me down to sleep

I spent Sunday afternoon in Kensal Green cemetery. We took the guided tour of the catacombs which was pretty exciting except that we were forced to stay close to the well meaning but rather dreary tour guide. The guided cemetery tours are given by ‘The friends of Kensal Green’. As you can imagine any person who considers a Victorian grave yard his buddy is likely to be somewhat socially challenging. And so it was that he led us down the dark stone stairway from the Anglican Chapel into the cold damp dark catacombs below. He showed us the mechanical system that lowers the coffins from the church above to the resting place below. I ascertained that I could get a signal on my Blackberry but the church insists that catacomb coffins are lined in lead which means I now have to totally rework my precautions against being entombed alive strategy. While the ‘friend’ was banging on about the hydraulics of the ‘dumb waiter for the dead’ my mortal friend and I stepped back from the tour to get a better look and a little touch of the tunnels lined with arched recesses full of coffins. We cracked open a bar of Green and Blacks and discussed what an excellent place this would be to A) get laid and B) get buried. Apparently it costs just £5000 to leave your earthly body in Kensal Green catacombs and there are still places available!