About Me

I'm a PhD student researching the role of the archaeological dead in contemporary British society. Think of this as a scrapbook of all the interesting links, snippets of information and random bits and bobs I come across pertaining to death, dying and the dead. Enjoy?!

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    Richard IIIs fans say a simple stone to mark his burial place is not fit for a king After his last resting place beneath a council car park, anything would be an improvement for Richard III. But following one row over whether his remains should be reburied in Leicester or York, a new dispute emerged yesterday over how grand the tomb should be. Despite calls for an elaborate memorial, it seems the last Plantagenet king will have to make do with something much more simple within Leicester Cathedral.  The cathedral’s design brief specifies a preference for ‘a place of simple dignity’ – an engraved memorial stone. It informs architects the church authorities would like to ‘mark the place of burial with a ledger stone’ which sits flat on the floor, possibly with a ‘decorative border’.  Anything more grandiose would be ‘disproportionate’. The new monument will be placed on the spot where a memorial stone commemorating the 15th century king currently sits within the chancel. ‘While the remains of an English king are of historical significance, it should not be forgotten that Richard demonstrated both the honourable and dishonourable characteristics of human beings,’ the brief states. ‘Opportunities for prayer and reflection should focus on themes of sin and redemption, justice and peace.’ Read more here.

    Richard IIIs fans say a simple stone to mark his burial place is not fit for a king

    After his last resting place beneath a council car park, anything would be an improvement for Richard III.

    But following one row over whether his remains should be reburied in Leicester or York, a new dispute emerged yesterday over how grand the tomb should be.

    Despite calls for an elaborate memorial, it seems the last Plantagenet king will have to make do with something much more simple within Leicester Cathedral. 

    The cathedral’s design brief specifies a preference for ‘a place of simple dignity’ – an engraved memorial stone.

    It informs architects the church authorities would like to ‘mark the place of burial with a ledger stone’ which sits flat on the floor, possibly with a ‘decorative border’. 

    Anything more grandiose would be ‘disproportionate’.

    The new monument will be placed on the spot where a memorial stone commemorating the 15th century king currently sits within the chancel.

    ‘While the remains of an English king are of historical significance, it should not be forgotten that Richard demonstrated both the honourable and dishonourable characteristics of human beings,’ the brief states.

    ‘Opportunities for prayer and reflection should focus on themes of sin and redemption, justice and peace.’

    Read more here.

    Co-op funeral firm piled naked bodies up in grim warehouse morgue

    Britain’s biggest funeral firm has been accused of treating the dead with shocking disrespect and stacking bodies ‘like television sets’ at industrial-scale storage units.

    Instead of being kept in a chapel of rest before burial or cremation, the dead are kept among ‘rack upon rack of bodies’ in a warehouse-style ‘hub’.

    An undercover investigation revealed overworked staff were ‘treating bodies like luggage.’

    In one incident four bodies had to be transported in the same van and the lid was taken off an elderly woman’s coffin so they could all fit.

    The woman’s nose was almost touching the shelf above and when the body was unloaded in view of a block of flats a member of staff held the lid over the coffin to ‘preserve some dignity’.

    Co-operative Funeralcare, which has 900 funeral homes across the country and last year made a profit of over £52million, has apologised for bad practices revealed in Channel 4’s Dispatches programme and has launched an internal inquiry.

    Click through for the rest - the programme is on Channel 4 tonight and I shall most definitely be watching!