Two Very Sad Goodbyes

David Bowie – aka the Thin White Duke and Ziggy Stardust:  1947 – 2016. Aged 69

You didn’t have to be a fan know how iconic he was. You didn’t have to be a fan to know he had talent. And you didn’t have to be a fan to have a few of his tracks on various artiste CDs and to sing along to them.

Over 5 decade long career, he was never afraid to try new things whether it was changing his image over and over again or changing styles in music, which kept himself fresh and his music strong. He was ahead of the time.

He will always be remembered for his music. Some of his most notable are – Space Oddity, Star man Let’s dance and his duets with other influential stars including: Dancing in the street with Mick Jagger in 1985, Under Pressure with Queen in 1981, and the Christmas classic, Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy with Bing Crosby in 1997. Space oddity was even sung by the astronaut Chris Hadfield on the international space station with the video going viral.

He appeared in more than two films including: Labyrinth and The man Who Fell to Earth. His music provided soundtracks during films and TV including Fame in Pretty Women, and Changes in Shrek 2; and in TV, BBC 1’s  Life on Mars and Channel 4’s Father Ted, as part of the talent contest episode where they parodied the song ‘Ziggy plays guitar’ with the character dressed up as Ziggy. 

During the Live Aid on 13^th July 1985, he sang Heroes, a very fitting song for such an important event.

His legacy continues with the V & As exhibit of David Bowie. It was and is still so popular that it is now touring the world.

Goodbye to a legend.

R.I.P.

Alan Rickman (21 February 1946 – 14 January 2016). Aged 69

Many people knew him as the complex Professor Severus Snape in Harry Potter, and some people knew him as Hans Gruber in Die Hard – which was the role that earned him the right to be a household name – as well as performing in various Shakespeare plays on stage along with the Royal Shakespeare Company. Alan Rickman was considered by many, as a prominent figure in the acting business. When he got bored playing villains, he showed that he was equally as good at playing characters with a different side to them, most notably, the robot in Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, and Jamie in the romantic comedy, Truly, Madly, Deeply.

Those who worked with him have all said that he supported them on set and off.

I, along with many people in their twenties, grew up with Harry Potter. We all thought that Snape was the bad guy, even when some of the evidence pointed towards him saving Harry in the first book. J.K Rowling pictured Alan Rickman playing Professor Snape as she was writing the books, and told him that there was more to the character than what was already released. With that knowledge, Alan played the part perfectly. During filming before the last book was published, he was ask to do something, he would say, ‘no, I can’t do that,’ as he knew more than the director did. It is only after Snape’s story was fully revealed, did I and many, many people knew that Alan’s performance was flawlessly. Because Alan knew, he was able to slip subtle actions that showed Professor Snape’s complexity as a whole.

Both the music and acting business has lost two great people who contributed so much.

R.I.P.