Peter Pan and the Admiral Crichton are the two memorable successes of novelist and playwright J.M.Barrie whose birthday was yesterday in 1860.

 Born at 6.30am in Kirriemuir, Scotland, he was the ninth child of ten in a Calvinist family of a modestly successful weaver. He was, in the way of those days in Scotland, exceptionally well educated at school, spending some time away from home. The significant event of his childhood which marked his life and paradoxically led to his greatest triumph was the accidental death of an older teenage sibling, his mother’s favourite, when he was six. In order to reassure his grieving mother and perhaps gain her attention he tried to become the brother who would never grow old. She found comfort in the fact that her dead son would remain a boy forever, never to grow up and leave her.

 Barrie himself left home twice in his childhood to go to different schools, always wanted to be a writer and started early as a journalist after university, moving ultimately to London and mixed with the litterati of the day  – H. G. Wells, Rudyard Kipling, Arthur Conan Doyle, P. G. Wodehouse, Jerome K. Jerome, G. K. Chesterton, A. A. Milne and others.

 He had an 11^th house Taurus Sun and Pluto with a creative Neptune in his career 10^th. His 7^th house Capricorn Moon opposition Venus and trine Pluto spoke to his close affectionate bond with his mother.

  But the key configuration in his chart was an 8^th house Mars in Capricorn opposition Jupiter square Mercury in Aries. When his brother died, tr Pluto in Cancer was opposition his Mars and tr Uranus in Aries was square his Mars and conjunct his Mercury – so turning his life upside down with a massive explosion which affected him at the deepest level. He only grew to five foot 3 inches and was said to suffer from a psychosocial dwarfism -a rare form of growth disorder, caused by emotional deprivation or stress which leads to growth failure due to hormonal disruptions. If true it clearly did not affect his intellectual development.

 When Peter Pan was put on stage in 1904 to become a world-wide success tr Jupiter in Aries was conjunct his Mercury and breathing new life into his Cardinal T square – with tr Saturn also heading for his Midheaven.

  His personal life was fairly stunted with a short lived marriage to an actress, reportedly unconsummated; and his friendships with a variety of children which later raised questions about his motives. Though one of them later said “He was an innocent which is why he could write Peter Pan.”  

He was a generous benefactor to friends and their families, even his divorced wife. And he handed over the rights to Peter Pan to the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children.

Antarctica explorer Robert Falcon Scott was amongst his many friends. Barrie was godfather to Scott’s son Peter and was one of the seven people to whom Scott wrote letters in the final hours of his life during his expedition to the South Pole, asking Barrie to take care of his wife and son.

His secretary latterly was Cynthia Asquith, the daughter-in-law of the British Prime Minister.  In the 1930s, Barrie met and told stories to the young daughters of the Duke of York, the future Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret. After meeting him, the three-year-old Princess Margaret announced, “He is my greatest friend and I am his greatest friend”.

Despite his elevated circle of friends – courtesy of his 11^th house Sun and influential 11th house Pluto, his Admiral Crichton was a socially subversive play (later film with Kenneth More) which elevated a shipwrecked butler to become ‘the governor’ and the aristocrats and erstwhile employers were reduced to underlings.

The white smoke announcing Pope Leo XIV’s election at 6.08 pm in Rome sent the crowds of the faithful gathered in St Peter’s Square into wild expressions of delight and surprise. An American pope had not been expected though Leo’s South American missionary work has led to hopes of a unity head of the church, bringing together disparate factions.

 He has taken the name of the previous revolutionary Pope Leo X111, regarded as the founding father of Catholic social doctrine in modern times. He positioned himself on the side of the working class, affirming such things as the right of workers to decent working conditions, a just wage, labor unions and the right to strike. He went on to serve as pope for 25 years.

 This Pope Leo XIV, born 14 September 1955 in Chicago, no birth time as yet, is a Sun Venus in Virgo sextile Saturn in Scorpio with Mars and perhaps Moon also in Virgo. His Jupiter in Leo is in a confident conjunction to Pluto square Saturn. Flexible, knowledgeable and tough.

  Though he does not have his name predecessor Leo X111’s revolutionary drive. He was born 2 March 1810 7pm Carpineto Romano, Italy and had a determined Sun Pluto in Pisces square Neptune Saturn in Sagittarius and trine Uranus.  He was elected on 20 February 1878 when there was a revolutionary Pluto square Uranus and Uranus on the focal point of a wide-ish yod inconjunct Jupiter sextile Saturn.

 Nor does he have the recent Pope Francis’s Uranus square Pluto in his birth chart and even more obvious in his election chart.

 What he does have is an uphill-struggle Pluto in the 4^th opposition a 10^th house Mars on his election chart pointing at internal resistance to change. Uranus Algol in the 8^th hint at financial entanglements which are difficult to resolve. The Jupiter falls in the far-travelled 9^th so his greatest success may come away from Rome.

 He has already raised the ire of the MAGA zealots for his views on gun control and immigration and previous criticism of JD Vance and a number of key Trump policies online. Laura Loomer, a Trumpian conspiracy theorist said: ‘He is anti-Trump, anti-MAGA, pro-open Borders, and a total Marxist like Pope Francis,’ she went on, later. ‘Catholics don’t have anything good to look forward to.’

 His synastry with Trump is dire. Pope Leo’s Pluto is conjunct DT’s Mars in Leo and Ascendant and square DT’s Midheaven. With Pope Leo’s Sun Venus square DT’s Uranus Sun. Pope Leo’s Sagittarius North Node is conjunct DT’s Moon and opposition his Sun North Node hinting at ‘spiritual’ journeys going in opposite direction.

  This election chart is not an easy one for making substantive progress but he will clash with the pro-Trumpers.

Add On: The three previous Popes election charts. John Paul with Mars Pluto in the 8th is ominous with a good deal of buried dirt and secrets, glossed over by a popular Jupiter on the Descendant.

Benedict, a serious Saturn in the 10th square Sun.

Francis had a 7th house Moon and Uranus with Mars conjunct the Descendant from the 6th and a 4th house Pluto – plenty of fire and divisive argument and pushback from the internal politics.

Political party charts are often a surprisingly opaque guide to wins and losses. The commonly used Democratic Party chart of 8 January 1828 is no different, checked against Clinton and Obama triumphs and Reagan and G.W. Bush’s defeats from a Democrat viewpoint. There is a slight hint of the Nodes being involved but nothing startling.

  The chart does have a Sun Neptune in Capricorn opposition Saturn in Cancer which could point to a party keen on improving the lot of the underdog; with Venus in friendly Aquarius square an enthusiastic and determined Mars Jupiter in Scorpio. The North Node in Scorpio can be a hint that losing everything can be a way of finding their core purpose. Though there is no saying how long the stripping away of former glory lasts. And presumably is dependent on some self-awareness of what went wrong in the past.

  This last painful loss to Trump and the Republicans recently did show up – which may be a coincidence since if you play with enough numbers some are going to fit whether relevant or not. Tr Pluto was conjunct the Dem Solar Arc Saturn opposition the Solar Arc Sun Neptune which reflects utter devastation.  And tr Uranus was conjunct the Solar Arc Jupiter Mars and square Venus, which is quite a complex mix of an emotional upset, high insecurity and perhaps a dent in over-hopefulness. Mars Jupiter at a negative level can point to partnership difficulties – and the whole Biden/Harris imbroglio might be part of that.

  On this chart 2026/27 look devastated and confused and by 2028 tr Saturn will oppose the Dem Jupiter which is less than ideal. Though I have seen wins with seemingly negative influences on the party chart so it is hardly a definite no.  2033 looks marginally brighter with tr Jupiter Pluto in Aquarius square the Dem Jupiter Mars; though by that time tr Neptune will be squaring the Sun Neptune opposition Saturn.

 One problem in the USA is that the Democratic Party has changed radically since its early days that this chart may not be sound as the basis for prediction.

Cartoon: Thomas Nast, in Harper’s Weekly, from 1862 to 1886, America’s first great political cartoonist.

PS My slight impression is the Republican chart of 1853 works better than the Democratic chart and it had tr Jupiter conjunct Solar Arc Jupiter conjunct its North Node over the recent Inauguration.

“The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”  William Faulkner.

  Groundhog Day rolls round in Palestine-Israel, Russia and Eastern Europe and now India-Pakistan with the old hatreds flaring up like volcanic lava.

 One India commentator remarked about the recent Kashmir tit for tat violence: “These tensions are unlikely to subside anytime soon. They are rooted in longstanding historical faultlines and questions of national identity.” “At the heart of the tensions is the question of identity rooted in the scars of partition in 1947 that created the countries of India and Pakistan. The Pakistani state – and in particular the military and intelligence establishment – has derived legitimacy from maintaining a well-entrenched anti-India identity.”

  And since Narendra Modi took over a decade ago in India with a pro-Hindu, anti-Muslim stance the antipathy has only increased.

 There have been several Indo-Pakistan military conflicts since 1947, mainly over Kashmir and individual atrocities such as the Mumbai bombing in November 2008 by Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistan-based Islamist militant organisation, and several others in the 1990s in retaliation for riots which killed many Muslims. LeT is thought to be protected by Pakistan Intelligence services and used as a proxy.  Their ideology is the restoration of Islamic rule over all parts of India and in neighbouring countries. Indeed Hafiz Saeed, a scholar of Islam, has said that the purpose of Jihad is to carry out a sustained struggle for the dominance of Islam in the entire world. He considers India, Israel and US to be his prime enemies. The Lashkar-e-Taiba does not believe in democracy and nationalism.

   Minimal astrology since it has all been said in previous posts:

India & Pakistan – remembering a bloody birth 8th August 2022

Kashmir – a beautiful conflict zone 25th April 2025

Kashmir – beautiful and dangerous 6th August 2019

 The key figure in Pakistan appears to be Asim Munir, head of the Army who took over on 29 November 2022 at 11.30am, Rawalpindi (source: India astro website). That hints at failure towards the year end with high tensions in 2026 and a clash of opinions.

  The broader question is whether these historical hatreds will ever run out of steam. The English and French fought each other for centuries until they finally backed off shooting each other and contented themselves with sharp comments.

 There are no indications that the two significant astrological markers of the past fifty years – the triple conjunction in Capricorn of the late 1980s/early 1990s and this upcoming Uranus trine Pluto sextile Neptune Saturn – are going to make the slightest difference to the above standoffs.

Hollywood has passed its glory days having lost ground in the past two decades in a global battle with countries like Britain, Australia,  Canada, New Zealand, Ireland, Hungary and Morocco which attract filmmakers with tax incentives. Other countries also have lower labour costs.

 The British Film Institute said spending on film and high-end TV production rose by almost a third in the UK to £5.6bn in 2024 and almost two-thirds spent on UK film production was from five big American studios and three US streaming platforms — Netflix, Apple and Amazon.

Whether Trump’s blunderbuss threat of  100% tariff on non-US-made movies would work is questionable. “How can you put a tariff on a Netflix show made in the UK and distributed worldwide over the internet?”

 Though it is assumed the levy would damage production hubs outside of the USA. And the US film industry and cinema chains would also be hit hard, likely to have to swallow higher costs, and consumers could face higher ticket prices. Shares in Netflix fell 2 per cent on Monday.

 The Hollywood chart, 1 February 1887, is not facing a good two years ahead with the Mars in Pisces square Pluto catching hard aspects from tr Uranus from this August and through 2026 for agitation, insecurity and alarm; with a calamitous setback from Solar Arc Mars conjunct Saturn in 2026 as well. Tr Pluto square the Jupiter may give a minor lift in 2026/27 at the same time but the minuses may outweigh the pluses.

 Pinewood, the UK film studio, set up in 30 September 1936, home to many US movies, is looking rattled at the moment with tr Pluto square the Venus into 2026; and tr Uranus square Mars also in 2026; with a financial confident-dent in 2027 from SA Neptune conjunct the Jupiter.

  Disney Australia, 1 May 1998, involved in the production of numerous major films, including The Matrix, Moulin Rouge!, Mission: Impossible 2, Star Wars Episodes II and III, Superman Returns, and Son of the Mask, is looking devastated this year as well with tr Pluto conjunct the Neptune.   

Atlas Corporation Studios in Ouarzazate, Morocco, another film hub, founded 1983, – “Gladiator,” “Kingdom of Heaven,” “The Mummy,” and scenes from “Game of Thrones will also be affected.

 As will Origo Studios in Budapest, Hungary, which opened in spring 2010 – Dune, Blade Runner: 2049 Inferno, The Witcher. Its biggest foreign partners include Warner Studios, Legendary Entertainment, SONY Pictures, Netflix Studios, Amazon Studios, Lionsgate, StudioCanal, Skydance, Gaumont, TNT, Paramount Pictures, Alcon Entertainment, Disney, FOCUS Features, Columbia Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox. Like the other charts it looks trapped, infuriated this year and uncertain in 2026.

Donald Trump and Hollywood are not a good mix with H’s North Node in Leo conjunct his Mars; H’s Neptune conjunct his Midheaven; and H’s Mars on his Descendant square Pluto in his 10^th – very competitive. The relationship chart has a composite Mars conjunct Algol in line for a tr Uranus conjunction from the 28th of this month which looks anything but supportive – an explosive jab in the ribs – and uncertainty rolling through 2026/27. His relationship chart with Pinewood if anything looks worse.

Jon Voight, actor of yesteryear, Angelina Jolie’s father is reputed to be the instigator of this latest diatribe. Born 28 December 1938 11.50am, New York, he is a Sun Capricorn square Saturn in Aries with a forceful Mars in Scorpio opposition Uranus in Taurus. His Jupiter does fall on Trump’s Descendant but it is not a great mix with his Mars opposition Uranus square Trump’s Pluto which could destabilize the latter.  Their relationship chart looks edgy and uncertain in the extreme moving forward with tr Saturn Neptune in hard aspect to the composite Mars opposition Mars Neptune and tr Uranus conjunct the composite Sun Saturn.

  Another ill-thought-out, unrealistic manouevre which will backfire but not before it has caused maximum instability.  

Conservative leader Friedrich Merz has won a parliament vote to become Germany’s next chancellor at the second attempt. He initially fell six votes short of the majority he needed on Tuesday morning – ‘a significant blow to his prestige and an unprecedented failure in post-war German history.’

  His coalition with the Social Democrats should have had enough seats in parliament from the start, with 328 MPs in total, but it is thought 18 of them dissented during the first vote.

 He was elected with the frustratingly trapped Mars opposition Pluto still in place. At the morning vote which he lost around 10.45am it was sitting exactly with Pluto on the Descendant and Mars on the Ascendant for an infuriating result. By circa 4.28pm for the second vote it had moved to the 5^th/11^th house which is a minor improvement; though Sun in the 8^th hints at slow progress with Saturn, Scheat, Neptune on the Descendant hinting at disappointment in partnerships both internal and external since the Germany/EU relationship looks very troubled ahead.

 He takes over at a time when Germany is facing a time of setbacks, panic and uncertainty with the Tr Neptune Saturn in Aries in hard aspect to the Germany Mars in Libra square Saturn in Capricorn in 2025/26, followed by a pressured tr Pluto square the Germany Moon in 2026/27 hinting at a mutinous electorate.

 Merz, 11 November 1955, a stalwart Sun Saturn in Scorpio with Jupiter Pluto in late Leo has endurance but not flexibility. Yet with tr Pluto opposition his Uranus and tr Uranus and tr Neptune Saturn also in aspect to his Uranus he will have no option but to bend with changing circumstances.

Saturn moves into fiery Aries from the 25^th of this month staying longer than usual until April 2028. Its recent sojourn through Pisces ran from March 2023.

 The changeover will be noticeable since the move from regretful, uncertain, indecisive Pisces into independent and tough-minded Aries will to a degree stiffen spines.  Leaving aside the softening effect of Neptune close by, Saturn in Aries fosters self-reliance, reduces sympathy and sentimentality, develops resourcefulness and initiative and can lead to a selfish, personal-needs-come-first approach.

 Where it gets complicated is that Saturn close to Neptune in tandem in Aries through the period ahead can have a healing effect and on past experience will fight for the underdog. Women’s and workers’ right come to the fore under Saturn Neptune. Though so do epidemics.

  Recent phases of Saturn in Aries are not much of a guide as to what to expect – 1908/09; 1937/38; 1967/68.

Previous conjunctions of Saturn Neptune in Aries in 1379 and 1703 happened with Saturn Neptune in late Aries.

What is extraordinary about this time is the four outer planets all moving into a different sign within a short period.

  Uranus in Gemini (from July) trine Pluto through the rest of this year and in orb till 2029 will bring about a definite push for reform and dynamic progress, with deeper insights (from some) about what has to change to move civilization forward.

 The Saturn Neptune conjunction in Aries sits in the middle of this trine which led astrologer Andre Barbault to wax eloquent   about the virtues he hoped it would bring. “ We are faced with the possibility of a change such as to make it seem too weak the terms “change” or the same “upheaval” to define the breadth of what could transform the known world.”

All that can be said for certain is that Pluto and Neptune are now into their new zodiac domains in Aquarius and Aries respectively. Saturn is next and by early July with Uranus into Gemini, the final piece of the jigsaw will be in place.

  On the super-optimistic scenario – Uranus sextile Neptune can be inventive and inspired; Uranus sextile Saturn combines the best of the old with the best of the new; Pluto sextile Neptune can be idealistic, intuitive, creative; Pluto sextile Saturn can provide grit and perseverance to push plans through.

 Though there is precious little sign of much that is progressive on the horizon at the moment. Admittedly some of the weirder Neptune in Pisces’ social manias are receding. With common sense prevailing there should be a possibility of upholding the rights of minorities at the same time as protecting  majority rights. The push back against immigrants may intensify with Saturn in Aries’ less compassionate (more realistic?) stance.  Ditto certain sectors of the welfare state seen as overly generous and not conducive to self-reliance or social responsibility. Scientific and technological advances will inevitably happen, some in the area of health. As to art? Pluto in Capricorn in the past has coincided with highpoints in the creative sphere though there was precious little sign of it in the past decade plus.  

 We wait, watch and hope.

See previous post: Neptune Saturn in Aries – hope for better
18th November 2024

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 Actor Tom Hanks is one of the most popular and recognizable film stars worldwide and ranked as the fourth-highest-grossing American film actor. But not everything in his back story is sweetness and light.

 Born July 9, 1956 11.17 am Concord, California, with a Portuguese mother and an itinerant cook father, who took the three eldest children with him and by aged ten young Tom had lived in ten different houses. He started acting in school and never looked back.

 His daughter Elizabeth Ann from his first nine-year marriage has written a book about her similarly disjointed, abusive and neglectful childhood, spent from age five with a mother who struggled with addiction, mental health (possibly bi-polar) and caring responsibilities which at times left her without food or clean clothes. She and her older brother spent some weekends and school holidays with her father who did not have custody which was a startling change ‘in a house full of love and structure.’

  Her mother, she says, had an upside since she introduced her to classical music, films and books. But the switch between good times and bad was unsettling.

  Tom Hanks has a 10^th house career-oriented Cancer Sun square Neptune; with Mercury also in Cancer and a charming Venus in Gemini conjunct his Midheaven. He also has a Water Grand Trine of his Sun trine Mars in Pisces trine Saturn in Scorpio; with Saturn in a tough square to Pluto conjunct Jupiter. His Water Grand Trine plus Neptune gives him creative talent though a tendency to live in his own bubble of reality.

 His daughter Elizabeth, has a Sun Taurus opposition Uranus with her Sun on the focal point of a yod inconjunct Pluto sextile Neptune. Her Pisces Moon may be square Neptune which sounds possible but otherwise her issues look more centred around her father than her mother.  Not only does a Sun opposition Uranus hint at the breach in childhood but her Sun is also conjunct Chiron giving her problems with self-esteem with a hint about a father who is weak or wounded in some way.

 Her Taurus Sun Chiron is opposition her father’s Saturn and square his Pluto – so she would sense his defensiveness and find it difficult to break through the hard shell he erected in childhood.

  Their relationship chart is hugely stressed with a composite Sun Mercury opposition Mars square Pluto. It must have been enormously difficult for a child, already thrown around by her mother’s erratic mood swings, to intermittently drop into her father’s comfortable lifestyle and then be sent back.

Warren Buffett, the mega-successful investor referred to as the “Oracle” or “Sage” of Omaha and “the single most influential investor of all time – ” the Isaac Newton of investing” is retiring at 94. He has accumulated a massive fortune reckoned at US $168.2 billion, making him the sixth-richest individual in the world and is noted for his frugality, pledging to give away 99 percent of his fortune to philanthropic causes. The man tasked with the impossible job of replacing him is Greg Abel and commentators say it will take investors years to know whether he has the same talent and can come close to matching Buffett’s returns.

 Buffett born 30 August 1930, a few days after Sean Connery, has a creative Sun Neptune in Virgo and probably a Sagittarius Moon. That apart his chart is awash with Cardinal planets giving him an overdose of initiative and restlessness. He has a confident and lucky Jupiter Pluto in Cancer  square Uranus North Node in Aries opposition a financial Venus; with a disciplined, unsentimental Saturn in Capricorn opposition Mars in Cancer square Mercury.

 With tr Neptune Saturn starting to move in hard aspect to his Mars Saturn Mercury T square his decision to give up may be partly age and partly a sense that the times are a changing  radically. He will also want to step back as tr Uranus also is aiming to square his Neptune and Sun in the next two/three years. His Solar Arc Pluto is exactly conjunct his South Node at the moment which may be another prompt to put the brakes on his forward gear.

Greg Abel, 1 June 1962, a Sun, maybe Moon in Gemini has only one Cardinal planet and the rest are Fixed and Mutable so the exact opposite of Buffett. Abel does have a confident, lucky Jupiter opposition Pluto square his Sun (Moon) with a Fixed Grand Cross of Neptune opposition Mars square Saturn opposition North Node – both flexible and enduring. He looks unsettled at the moment with tr Uranus square his Uranus with a challenging tr Pluto square his Mars through this year; his Solar Arc Saturn square Neptune hitting his financial Venus now; plus his Solar Arc Sun conjunct his North Node for his moment of destiny.

 Abel takes over at an unstable time which will not make it easier ahead with some panics and disappointments cropping up on his midpoints in 2026/27 and worse in 2029 with his Solar Arc Pluto conjunct his Neptune and square his Saturn.