Yesterdays funerals

Leaving the graveyard at Rennes-le-Chateau after Russell Coopers burial yesterday- beautiful photo by Suzie, as is the one below which shows the spectacular view up there. Couldn't get there but many many people did. Russell carved spaces in all our lives.

And a little farewell to Bill Norris, with Tia his daughter, Saveria and Sebastien, Juno, Guy and me... and Bill on the table :) Which he'd have loved -

 

Get knitting

Ria is establishing a creative group -! Grab your needles and get down there 

Tricoter, crocheter, coudre ensemble c’est relaxant, amusant, convivial et enrichissant.

 Envie de nous rejoindre ?

 Tous les lundis après-midi de 14h à 16h30.

 24, Avenue de la gare Espéraza 

 Apportez simplement votre bonne humeur et votre matériel de loisirs créatifs.

Market thrills

Blown away by this little van library arriving at the market today - thoroughly agreeable librarian with but a handful of English books and they theological or generally esoteric. Bliss! He'll be doing the Sunday market too...

and here's Nightingale, hurrah, back in the creperie and as lovely as ever!

The Capt and I ate there last night and v good it was too - 

Here, below, is yesterdays sunrise. significant especially for the strange glowing thing on the bank (right side) Any ideas? Bob thinks plastic bag. He's wrong.

Tomorrow is Russell's funeral.

Also tomorrow Tia, daughter of Bill Norris, will be at the Pont from 17H so we can share memories of Bill over a glass of wine.

Bonne courage tous.

 

RIP Russell Cooper

 Rachel, Russells daughter, has announced that her father has died. Lifted this photo of him from her Fb page - obviously captivated by his grandchild. Many condolences to Pat, his wife, and all the family.

He and Pat turned up at my studio in 2003, on the occasion of the first Chemin des Artists (the precursor of Artists a Suivre) I thought he was French and he said he often forgot what nationality he was. 

He was long established here then, a carpenter by training and living in commune at Lavaldieu. Pat and he gradually took over the place, farming, breeding horses - his parents Jill and Tony turned up in Esperaza in the fullness, followed by his sister Sian. Quite a dynasty, which have all preceded him; he'll find a noisy welcome in heaven :) 

There'll be a send off starting at Lavaldieu on Friday at 10.00. and thereafter at the cemetery at Rennes-le-chateau. Rachel says to be aware that parking will be a problem and to think of car sharing, and to bring a bottle and some food to share. If you would like to speak during the event, please contact Rachel -

Russells impact on the area was huge and his legacy will outlive us all. I'm strangely lost for words when I think of his life and times... hugs all round.

Kat and the fish

Our Kats back - been doing culture in London with Roland for the last week. Here she is in the market on Sunday, a sunny and sociable day for many of us  :)

Weather clearly getting better - here are the fish that live in Annie and Petes old bath, rising to eat for the first time in months.

 

Bill Norris RIP d. 26 Jan 2026

It's cheeky of me to write an obit for Bill since I barely knew him - but knowing him ( a little) its not altogether inappropriate...

Everyone who did know him talks of him with great affection and it would be difficult not to, his evident qualities shining out. The word Gentleman gets bandied about, terribly polite with a most mellifluous voice; even when he'd forgotten who you were and what you were doing there he was charming. He felt like an old friend as soon as you met.

I got into contact with him late in life when his daughter asked me to drop by and play chess with him. Always on the look out for a game, it is possible to pop into the Maison de retrait where he was ensconced at any time after 11.00, avoiding meal times.  It became a quiet retreat for me, a shelter from the hurly burly :)

Here's a bit of online biography :

William (Bill) Norris spent more than ten years working for various newspapers in England and Africa before his appointment as Parliamentary Correspondent to the prestigious Times of London. Afterward, as the Africa Correspondent for The Times, he covered a wide range of political beats in Biafra, Nigeria, Angola, the Congo, Mozambique, Botswana, Zambia, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe. He went on to counsel young journalists as the Associate Director of the PressWise Trust (a British media ethics charity) and present at colleges and conferences for many years, publishing numerous works of fiction and nonfiction inspired by his investigative journalism. 

Many things Bill spoke of stick in the memory. His favourite place was Nairobi. When asked why, he said it was for the lions walking in the streets. He wrote many books and told me the worse thing was that people lied, all the time. Deceit hard wired. His job was to untangle lies.   

Bill was quite content in the retreat home, as long as he had lots to read he was happy; I rarely turned up there without a book or two having myself a terror of nothing to read. We would chat about books, in the garden when the weather was decent, where he would expand visibly in the open space - 

He seemed to have forgotten his French as he'd aged - he forgot a deal of stuff - but his memories of the distant past were lively. His chess was erratic! Sometimes he's throw a game, probably bored by me, and sometimes we'd have a good fight. 

Deeply saddened by his death and when I examine that feeling I think its more than Bill that's died, its a whole culture that's gone with him. It's become a trope to say we'll never see his like again, but... but who knows, perhaps we'll meet again.

 PS Big thanks to Saveria for letting me use the photo of Bill -

Just in case you had church-going plans...