And women.

Some might argue, with greater reason, that you are sick.

Some might argue he might never have been so bitter had his fiancée not been killed by a German bomb.

That's no excuse for him turning into an extreme right-wing, xenophobic, racist, sexist and bigoted dinosaur.

They would be right, I've a cold at the moment.
Thanks for your concern.

Patrick Moore was noted for being an astronomer, broadcaster and great communicator on his chosen subject. As such, he single-handedly made astronomy a popular pastime and inspired countless people. self-included, to discover the night sky.

He wasn't famous for anything else. He was an old man from another era, and had some views which you don't share, but they in no way detract from his brilliance. He might have died, but his star will shine on brightly.

Who probably shared similar views to most of our grandparents or great-grandparents.

A completely different era, cultural norms a world away from today, and actually a very fooking good excuse for his extreme feelings. Odd you don't think your fiancée being killed in a violent act of war is worthy of a major emotional response.

I'm sure deep down he knew his views were extreme but you know what, he probably couldn't forgive, and only a fool wouldn't understand that.

Being not into the 'night sky' I used to reach for the tv zapper rapido on the the odd ocassion he appeared on my tv screen.
I could have made a pretty good assumption at some of the adjectives you've used in describing him.
I'd have used [ibat,[/i he appeared an old-school eccentric.

The French are out for the French (which I admire), so I reckon there will be lot who don't trust them.

My Father fought in WW2 in the desert, in Burma then was called up for Korea. I always found it odd that he didn't seem to express hatred for his then "enemy" (at least not to me). However, he did dislike his American allies.The only aspects of war he ever discussed were either novelty, such as frying an egg on a tank hull, or "accidentally" driving his bren gen carrier through the officers mess tent!

Anyhoo, was walking sections of Hadrians wall this weekend around "Twice Brewed". I was amazed at the view of the night sky and could see the Milky Way and star clusters that I can't see at home. Jupiter was the brightest thing in the sky. There wasn't much light pollution locally although Newcastle was an orange glow beyond the horizon.

That would be the place to be tomorrow night for the meteors, then! It's a shame that the vast majority of people in English cities will never get to see the Milky Way in their lifetime. Unless things get so bad that we start getting power cuts. Once of the amazing things the last time we had power cuts was seeing the night sky in all its glory over Bradford, surreal.

I would imagine it would be a good place - we got a very clear view of a meteor in the 10mins before the lure of real ale had it's wicked way