On the same day as spiky haired Brit TV chef Gary Rhodes (theguardian.com) and irreverent humorist and theatre and opera director Sir Jonathan Miller (bbc.co.uk):
Clive James: Australian broadcaster and author dies aged 80 (bbc.co.uk).
Born Vivian James in 1939, he moved to England in 1961 and rose to prominence as a literary critic and TV columnist.
He went on to deliver wry commentary on international programming in such shows as Clive James On Television.
And with his juxtaposed take the phenomenon of fame in the history of the modern media, Fame in the 20th Century from the Beeb in 1993 (Wikipedia) vastly influential to me personally and his pithy, acerbic deadpan monologues on fame and celebrity more responsible than anything else with regards how I attempt to present on this and my Digest sites.
“Clive died almost 10 years after his first terminal diagnosis, and one month after he laid down his pen for the last time,” the statement read.
“He endured his ever-multiplying illnesses with patience and good humour, knowing until the last moment that he had experienced more than his fair share of this ‘great, good world’.”
Which, having been diagnosed with leukaemia in 2010, had led to him admitting to “embarrassment” at still being alive (Wikipedia) having seemingly perpetually but endearingly writing that he was “near to death but thankful for life” seemingly for the whole of that period, with even a fan like myself just a few weeks ago having to double check he hadn’t in fact passed on.
Clive James: 'A wisecracking literary phenomenon who was on fire with life itself’ (theguardian.com).
The death of Clive James breaks as its own kind of “fake news”, a moment so long anticipated and imagined—not least by its irrepressible protagonist, merrily riffing on Mark Twain and the rumours of his death being “exaggerated”—that now Clive is no longer with us, it’s hard to take in, to comprehend or quite believe.
#RIPCliveJames (Instagram).
Recent/related stories
- Clive James ‘saying goodbye’ through his poetry (Pick of the Week 28th May 2014)
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