Dead Pool 13th July 2025

I think the word we all need today is claggy. But the stifling heat will not stop the rollercoaster that is the Dead Pool. This week we can award some points! With the death of Norman Tebbit I can deal out 56 points to Shân, well done her! 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

• Wayne Dobson, 68, English magician, complications from multiple sclerosis. 
• Norman Tebbit, Baron Tebbit, 94, British politician, secretary of state for employment (1981–1983), and MP (1970–1992). 
• James Carter Cathcart, 71, American voice actor (Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters, Sonic X), throat cancer. 
• Ian Blair, Baron Blair of Boughton, 72, British police officer and life peer, Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis. 
• David Gergen, 83, American political commentator and advisor, complications from Lewy body dementia. 
• Donald Rose, 110, British supercentenarian and World War II veteran, oldest man in the United Kingdom. 

In Other News

Grange Hill star Lee MacDonald has put all his energy into campaigning after experiencing two terrifying cancer scares in 18 months. The Zammo McGuire actor had his first cancer scare last year after a “little black spot” appeared on his eye, which he initially brushed off as a mole. He was more ‘annoyed’ by it due to its close proximity to his eye but, after it started ‘weeping’, his wife encouraged him to see a doctor, which still didn’t cause Lee to worry. “Cancer didn’t even cross my mind going into the doctor’s. I went there purely because it was annoying me, and it was there, and I wanted to get rid of it,” he recalled of the doctor’s visit as he explained how he thought it would turn out to be a harmless mole or pimple. “So I thought, a bit of cream and it’ll go.” However, his world soon turned upside down when the doctor told him the black spot looked like cancer. Lee returned to the doctor’s for another biopsy and learned the spot wasn’t cancerous, despite the doctor’s initial fears. Although it was the positive news he wanted to hear, he gained a new perspective on his health as he teamed up with O2’s campaign in partnership with The British Skin Foundation to highlight the importance of sun safety. Earlier this month, Lee found a rash on his face that he first assumed was from shaving. “Because I was shaving every other day and it would bleed, I just thought it’s a rash where I’m shaving on it, I’m just aggravating it, so it’s never going to clear up.” Lee stopped shaving around it to see if the problem would stop persisting, but nothing changed. He quickly booked an appointment with the doctor for a check-up and learned it was actually keratosis, a rash with pre-cancerous cells. When he was told of the diagnosis, his first thought was: “Oh, not again.” The EastEnders star will soon be getting the rash burnt off, which will ‘hopefully get rid of it’. “So hopefully, you know, it will get rid of it. But again, quite scary. So that’s two scares in 18 months.”   

Jeff Lynne has been forced to cancel his planned BFT Hyde Park concert this weekend after falling ill. The team working with the 77-year-old music star had previously revealed he was suffering from ill health. A statement issued on Saturday confirmed the news, announcing: “Jeff Lynne is heartbroken to report that he will not be able to perform at tomorrow’s BST Hyde Park show. “Jeff has been battling a systemic infection and is currently in the care of a team of doctors who have advised him that performing is simply not possible at this time nor will he be able to reschedule. The legacy of the band and his longtime fans are foremost in Jeff’s mind today — and while he is so sorry that he cannot perform, he knows that he must focus on his health and rehabilitation at this time.” The news comes after the band cancelled their Thursday night performance at Manchester’s Co-Op Live due to “illness”. A fan who was at the ELO gig a day before the cancelled explained to the Flying Monkeys: “At the start of the set he came on and couldn’t play the guitar because he has injured his hand. He sounded shaky to begin with but his singing and energy picked up and was great until the last 10 minutes of the show.” A chair was brought onto the stage and he had to sit down to sing the last few songs, he appeared to be unsteady on his feet at the end and was helped off the stage by staff. “He really wasn’t well, it was obvious to fans at the gig he wasn’t himself and it is sad to see.” Jeff had previously battled with a broken hand whilst performing with the group on his farewell concert.  

Jessie J has received the “all clear” from her doctor after undergoing surgery following her breast cancer diagnosis. Jessie J, whose real name is Jessica Cornish, was relieved to hear the news. At the time, she recorded a video of herself to capture her reaction — and then she shared that video with her fans. “A video I took of myself after I got the all clear. When a friend asked ‘How do you feel?’ this explained it better than words,” Jessie J, 37, captioned an Instagram video. Fans could see the singer have a huge weight lifted off her chest as she took a deep breath. “I pray that anyone going through something hard and scary with their health, including everyone around them who are mentally effected and loves them gets to experience this feeling,” she added. 

On This Day

• 1985 – The Live Aid benefit concert takes place in London and Philadelphia, as well as other venues such as Moscow and Sydney.
• 1990 – Lenin Peak disaster: a 6.4-magnitude earthquake in Afghanistan triggers an avalanche on Lenin Peak, killing 43 climbers in the deadliest mountaineering disaster in history.
• 2016 – Prime Minister of the United Kingdom David Cameron resigns, leaving a fucking egotistical mess that we’re still trying to work out. 
• 2024 – Donald Trump is injured in an assassination attempt while speaking at an election campaign rally, destroying the belief that Americans can shoot straight.

Deaths

• 2020 – Grant Imahara, American engineer, roboticist, and television host (born 1970).
• 2024 – Shannen Doherty, American actress (born 1971). 
• 2024 – Richard Simmons, American fitness personality and public figure (born 1948).

Last Week’s Birthdays

Harrison Ford (83), Ken Jeong (56), Patrick Stewart (85), Melissa O’Neil (37), Michelle Rodriguez (47), Cheryl Ladd (74), Bill Cosby (88), Tamsin Greig (59), Stephen Lang (73),  Craig Charles (61), Chiwetel Ejiofor (48), Wyatt Russell (39), Fiona Shaw (67), Peter Serafinowicz (53), Sofía Vergara (53), Tom Hanks (69), Pamela Adlon (59), Jimmy Smits (70), Scott Grimes (54), Courtney Love (61), Richard Wilson (89), David Corenswet (32), Kevin Bacon (67), Anjelica Huston (74), Maya Hawke (27), Jaden Smith (27), Pauline Quirke (66), Jack Whitehall (37), and Ringo Starr (85).