Dead Pool 6th July 2025

With the death of Sandy Gall, I can award myself 53 points!! Go me!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

Sandy Gall, 97, Scottish journalist and television presenter.
Kenneth Colley, 87, English actor (Star Wars, Monty Python’s Life of Brian, Firefox), complications from COVID-19 and pneumonia.
Gerald Harper, 96, English actor (Hadleigh, Adam Adamant Lives!, A Night to Remember).
Julian McMahon, 56, Australian actor (Nip/Tuck, Fantastic Four, Home and Away), cancer.
Diogo Jota, 28, Portuguese footballer (Wolverhampton Wanderers, Liverpool, national team), traffic collision.
Michael Madsen, 67, American actor (Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill: Volume 2, Donnie Brasco), cardiac arrest.
Mark Snow, 78, American film and television composer (The X-Files, Smallville, Blue Bloods).
Peter Russell-Clarke, 89, Australian chef and television personality (Come and Get It), complications from a stroke.

In Other News

The Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, turned 90 today after a week of celebrations. Thousands of worshippers from around the world have travelled to Dharamshala, the small Indian town in the foothills of the Himalayas where the Dalai Lama lives, to mark the occasion. This includes long-time follower and Hollywood star Richard Gere, who is set to speak during the celebrations for the Nobel laureate, who is regarded as one of the world’s most influential religious leaders and worshipped by millions of Tibetan Buddhists as the living manifestation of Chenrezig, the Buddhist god of compassion. On Saturday, the Dalai Lama said he hoped to live for decades more, until the age of 130, so listing him for the next 39 years is probably going to be a late of time. Tenzin Gyatso, who became the 14th reincarnation of the Dalai Lama in 1940, fled his native Tibet in 1959 following a failed uprising against Chinese rule and took shelter in India, along with hundreds of thousands of Tibetans. According to Tibetan tradition, Dalai Lamas are “reincarnated” after they die. China annexed Tibet in 1950 and the current Dalai Lama lives in exile in India, making succession a highly contentious issue. Beijing rejected the statement, saying his successor would be from inside China and must be approved by the government.

Rock star David Roach has been left devastated after being diagnosed with a “very aggressive” form of cancer. The Junkyard rocker, who has fronted American heavy metal band Junkyard since 1987, shared a photo on Instagram from his hospital bed, flashing a peace sign with one hand and a defiant middle finger with the other, as fans rallied around him. David, who has led vocals for the heavy metal band, fell ill with what he thought was just a “fever and cough”, but was rushed to the ER, where doctors gave him the shock diagnosis. He is now battling squamous cell carcinoma affecting his head, neck, and throat, a fast-spreading cancer that has forced his fiancée Jennifer to give up her job to care for him full-time. The band has launched a GoFundMe to help cover medical costs, and Jennifer shared an emotional message with fans on Instagram. “We wish we could respond to each of you, but honestly, there are no words right now. We’re still struggling to process the news we received on Tuesday.” she wrote. At the time of publication, nearly $28,000 had already been raised. Country singer Nicholas Mich even hosted a Benefit Live Stream Concert to help support the fund.

Former James Bond actor George Lazenby has been diagnosed with early dementia, his ex-wife has revealed. Pam Shriver, has spoken candidly about supporting the former 007 actor as he navigates life with dementia. Lazenby, now 85, made history as the shortest-tenured Bond, appearing only once in the 1969 film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, after taking over the iconic role from Sean Connery. Despite his brief time as 007, the Australian actor remains a beloved figure among Bond fans. Shriver, a former US tennis star, met Lazenby in 2000 at Wimbledon when she was 37. The pair married, had three children – Kait, Sam, and George – and later divorced in 2008. However, Shriver has remained a close presence in Lazenby’s life. In an interview with The Flying Monkeys, Shriver revealed that Lazenby is in the “early stages of dementia,” but stressed that his personality still shines through. “He has dementia, but he is still very much himself,” she shared. “A softer version of himself, perhaps – and this is the key.” Lazenby had been living in a sheltered housing facility in Pacific Palisades until earlier this year, when wildfires ripped through the Los Angeles area and forced an evacuation. Following the incident, Lazenby was relocated to an assisted living facility in Santa Monica, where he continues to receive care. “We go for walks together, chatting about the kids and all the little anxieties which anyone with an older relative will recognise,” Shriver said. “His dementia affects his short-term memory but he tells stories about his younger days.” Shriver also shared that the pair had discussed legal matters years ago and agreed she would hold “power of attorney” should he ever lose mental capacity.

On This Day

1885 – Louis Pasteur successfully tests his vaccine against rabies on Joseph Meister, a boy who was bitten by a rabid dog.
1942 – Anne Frank and her family go into hiding in the “Secret Annexe” above her father’s office in an Amsterdam warehouse.
1944 – The Hartford circus fire, one of America’s worst fire disasters, kills approximately 168 people and injures over 700.
1947 – The AK-47 goes into production in the Soviet Union.
1988 – The Piper Alpha drilling platform in the North Sea is destroyed by explosions and fires. One hundred sixty-seven oil workers are killed, making it the world’s worst offshore oil disaster in terms of direct loss of life.

Deaths

1932 – Kenneth Grahame, Scottish-English author (born 1859).
1960 – Aneurin Bevan, Welsh politician, Secretary of State for Health (born 1897).
1971 – Louis Armstrong, American singer and trumpet player (born 1901).
1998 – Roy Rogers, American cowboy, actor, and singer (born 1911).
2020 – Charlie Daniels, American singer-songwriter, and fiddle-player (born 1936).
2020 – Ennio Morricone, Italian composer, orchestrator, conductor (born 1928).
2022 – James Caan, American actor (born 1940).