Category: Star Spot

the60life salutes star of TV’s “The Good Life”

It is with great sadness that we read that Richard Briers,CBE, a star of the highly successful 1970’s TV sitcom series “The Good Life”, has passed away at the age of 79. He will for most people be strongly associated with his role as Tom Good who made them laugh uproariously with his antics during his chosen life of self-sufficiency in Surbiton. What may surprise many is that “The Good Life”  ran for only three years, and was but a minute part of his work in an acting career that spanned some fifty years. He was a highly regarded English actor whose career covered stage,film, TV, and radio.

The long list of acting credits to his name will be well covered by a great number of obituaries, and in interviews with friends and colleagues who knew him well and will testify to his genius. They will also talk of his great generosity shown to people he worked with. He was by all accounts in real life always a “thoroughly good and nice bloke.” What better thing can be said of anyone.

In his sixties and seventies, he worked mainly doing TV work, as in “Monarch of the Glen”, and eventually towards the end of his life happy only to do voice overs, but he was also acclaimed during these years for fine Shakespearean performances.

The writer for one will still enjoy immensely watching repeats of TV episodes of “The Good Life”,which was the work that made him a much loved household name.He apparently never tired of the attention received when recognised in public.

A story of a fern for your life and relationships

This story was brought to my attention recently by a successful internet marketer,Perry Marshall. It’s a good read, and ends as a kind of cautionary tale about not neglecting things like our relationships, which might otherwise wither like a plant that is deprived of attention. I thought I would share it with you today.

I have an asparagus fern named Lazarus, writes Tom Hoobyar

Why did I name him Lazarus? I’ll tell you why.

I named him Lazarus because when I first got him for my batchelor apartment I was sometimes a neglectful caretaker.

I got the plant so there would be something alive in my apartment besides me. It came in a small green plastic pot about the size of a coffee mug and cost two dollars. It was a little green living thing and it kept me a kind of quiet company… to read more

More creative writing tips for you

From Mike Paterson at The60LifeWeekly

21st October 2010

· More creative writing tips for you

· Could you profit from writing and publishing an e-book?
· This one’s for the guys: this simple test could save your life

Hi,

This week, the news in the UK is full of the Government’s announced spending cuts, and their likely impact on services, benefits, and employment… but last week, there was news that could be very good soon for men of a certain age…check it out…

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Check this out. A simple test may save a man’s life
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Occasionally, we have to look at the hard stuff: According to a report on the saga.co.uk website, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK with new cases reported annually. Every year about 10,000 men die of the disease.

However, scientists may have found a way to create the first effective urine test for prostate cancer, reports the Nursing Times.

‘A protein called MSMB found in urine is present at a lower level in men who have the disease. Its level also seems to be influenced by how aggressive the cancer is.

‘Hayley Whitaker, from Cancer Research UK charity’s Cambridge Research Institute, where the study was carried out, said: “We looked in tissue and urine from over 350 men with and without prostate cancer to find out how much MSMB they had. We then looked to see who had the genetic change. It was really exciting to find out that the genetic change and the amount of protein were linked.’

“The protein is easy to detect because it is found in urine and would potentially be a very simple test to carry out on men to identify those most at risk of developing the disease.”

Look after yourselves. Check it out

prostate-cancer-urine-test

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More creative writing tips for you

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Michele Roberts as the Writer-in-Residence at Bookbite has a new blog on its website, providing writing tips. She was born in 1949, and has published 20 books of fiction, poetry and essays. Her novel ‘Daughters of the House’ won the WH Smith Award and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize.

You can now follow her tips on her blog at

more writing tips for you

This week on her blog she’s looking at: re-writing, re-discovering and working with the negative

more writing tips for you

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Did you know? Authors who started writing in their later years include Kenneth Grahame, who wrote’ The Wind in the Willows’ in his retirement, and Frank McCourt, who had ‘Angela’s Ashes’ published when he was 66.

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Don’t miss your next weekly issue!

If you have missed earlier issues of The60Life Weekly – these can be found by scrolling down the categories in the right hand column at the60life.com

Yours,

Mike Paterson,
The 60Life Weekly

PS: Please, if you have your own stories, tips, or feedback send them to me at

http://[email protected]

Disclaimer: It is always my intention to be as accurate in fact, detail and comment as possible. However, I cannot be held responsible for any error in details, accuracy or judgement whatsoever. This e-letter is produced on this understanding.

Warning, how to avoid this online threat to your money

From : the60Life Weekly

7th October 2010

· Warning, how to avoid this online threat to your money
· Why we should get hot and sweaty in our 60s
· Tip of the Week: Shrug your shoulders!

Hi,

This week, let me share with you one of my daily concerns about the internet, security. The internet is a wonderful space, but for the unwary it has become a dangerous place. You may have heard recently of the couple who booked a holiday abroad only to find when they arrived at their destination that the accommodation they thought they had did not exist. Their money was lost. You can check out other similar stories below…

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Warning, how to avoid this online threat to your money
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The City of London Police has received dozens of reports of advertisements for non-existent villas and apartments since the establishment of the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) in June.

Villas in popular destinations, such as Cyprus, have been the target of fraudsters advertising non-existent holiday rentals

Det Supt Bob Wishart, from the City of London Police’s Economic Crime Department, advised travellers to take extra care when booking properties over the internet, and warned agents to be wary of which suppliers they work with.

“As a result of the work of the NFIB we are seeing for the first time substantial numbers of people reporting villa fraud,” said Mr Wishart . “We’d advise anyone looking to book a holiday online to use reputable websites, and look for agents who are ABTA and Atol affiliated.”

Research carried out by Get Safe Online, a government-backed initiative aimed at increasing awareness of internet scams, revealed that one in three internet users failed to check whether the company they booked with was a member of a recognised travel association.

For more on the stories of internet fraud and tips to help you avoid becoming a victim of fraud you can check out the Daily Telegraph report at

Police-warning-over-fake-holiday-villas

The link for the Government backed Get Safe Online is

getsafeonline.org-for free advice

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Why we should get hot and sweaty in our 60s

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Bestselling novelist Rosie Thomas says exercise is vital as you get older. She takes some exercise for at least an hour a day.

Running a marathon in 2006 at the age of 59 showed her how vital exercise was to her. Although now ” a leisurely six miles is about my limit ” She strongly believes ” that as we hit our ‘free time’ in our 60s, instead of slacking off we should increase our activity levels – gently at first, if we’re not used to it, but deliberately – to the point of regularly becoming sweaty and breathless.” Her GP agrees.

You can read more of Rosie’s exploits and exercise regime in the Daily Mail report at

Rosie-Thomas-says-exercise-vital-older

I am looking to review Rosie’s latest novel which is available in bookshops now: “Lovers and Newcomers”( published by Harper)

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Tip of the Week: Shrug your shoulders!
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If you, like me, spend time at your computer, why not try this when next you feel tired, and your shoulders are stiff with tension. Step away from your computer and, while standing straight take a deep breath, raise your shoulders as though in an exaggerated shrug, and hold the position for several seconds. Then exhale and relax your shoulders.

I find if I do this gentle exercise two or three times, in quick succession, that much of the tiredness quickly goes out of my shoulders. Go on try it. It works for me. I try to remember to do this at the end of regular short periods at the keyboard, with beneficial effect.

Don’t miss your next weekly issue!

For earlier issues of The60Life Weekly – these can be found by scrolling down the categories in the right hand column at the60life.com

Yours,

Mike Paterson,
The 60Life Weekly

PS: Please, if you have your own stories, tips, or feedback send them to me at

[email protected]

Disclaimer: It is always my intention to be as accurate in fact, detail and comment as possible. However, I cannot be held responsible for any error in details, accuracy or judgement whatsoever. This e-letter is produced on this understanding.

Today is the birthday of the British artist who put his stamp on the Post Office

In the excellent company of rock singer and campaigner,Bob Geldof, former England goalie,Ray Clemence, author and broadcaster,Robert Kee, and many,many others, Ronald Maddox, celebrates his birthday today. He is 80. President of the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours, he is a renowned artist,illustrator and British Stamp designer.

postalheritage.org.uk (where you can see examples of his extraordinary work) writes:

“In the 70s and 80s artist Ronald Maddox travelled throughout the United Kingdom making drawings and paintings for the Post Office, Royal Mail and BT. The resulting images later appeared on stamps, first day covers, posters, aerogrammes, telephone directories and stamp books. In a talk given [here] in May, Ronald Maddox reflected on more than two decades of work. This talk is now available on our podcast.”

In the Times today he is quoted as saying:”I never think about getting older. I shall just carry on walking,cycling and drawing.”

We wish him a very Happy Birthday.

An every day story of June Spencer

Perhaps you, too, grew up with ‘The Archers’ playing on the radio in the background. For me it signalled the end of yet another day, and time to go to bed when the latest evening instalment finished. There is one of the original cast from those faraway days, who is still going strong…

The Daily Telegraph reports:

“June Spencer OBE, 90, has been the voice of Peggy Woolley (née Perkins, formerly Archer) in Radio 4’s The Archers for 60 years and is the only remaining member of the original cast. She will be granted the Freedom of the City of London at the Guildhall on June 4. She lives in Surrey and has a holiday house in Menorca.”

You can check her day out in a full report at
June Spencer on being Peggy Archer

Ken’s still flying high at 94!

When I saw a piece in the Daily Mail yesterday about Ken Wallis, it gave me a lift. Wing Commander Ken Wallis MBE ,94 years of age, really does epitomise our site strapline: [he is] defined less by age, more by attitude. This hero-adventurer-inventor is one to count age merely as a number. He has been a flyer since 1936,  was a WW11 hero ,and served in the RAF until 1964. Totally self taught in engineering he still makes and flies autogyros, those frail looking  flying bob sleigh-like constuctions with tubular frame attached and two propellers, one at the back, the other on top. At his home in Norfolk, he has a number of these flying machines which can comfortably fly at 120 mph.

Apparently,Ken who holds a number of flying records has his sights on exceeding his speed record of 129 mph, and achieving 140 to 150 mph. He is finding that while his abilities know no bounds the Civil Aviation Authority may ground in red tape his proposed attempts on his speed records- the CAA have slapped a legal 70 mph speed limit on autogyros. Ken is not impressed!

It was Ken who, in 1967, was asked to build and fly one of his gyrocopters for the film sequences in the the James Bond film :’You Only Live Twice’. It was he who in his flying machine dubbed ‘Little Nellie’ acted as stunt double for Sean Connery. Though he did not appear in the film credits, he did have a great time travelling around to different countries in film promotions. ‘Little Nellie’ has pride of place with Ken’s other machines which are  housed in his large hangar workshop at home. You can catch more about Ken and his achievements (including a great YouTube clip to watch) at http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1289662/A-magnificent-man-DIY-flying-machine-Wing-Commander-94-trying-hit-130mph-shed-built-gyrocopter.html