Nobody I can think of would dispute the assertion that it’s good for the bereaved to spend time with their dead, contemplating their absence – what I like to call their very present absence. There is a debate about how dead a person should look. Some people want to spend

Yesterday I wrote about the two problems that most bedevil funeral directors. First, in the public perception, they offer poor value for money, a charge of which they are, most of them, innocent. Second, they may feel that they occupy a marginalised position in society because people wonder what’s under

Funeral directors know that they are viewed with suspicion, aversion, distrust. It’s what they do that lies at the root of this – the dark art of dealing with dead bodies. Yuk. How different they are from us. We don’t like people who are different from us. But most people

This blog gets as tired of the sound of its own voice as, probably, you do. So it welcomes guest posts from whoever wishes to sound off, air a view, explore an idea — whatever. If you would like to make use of this platform, please feel free. Just send

The banner on The Co-operative website proclaims that it is “good for everyone.” This accords with the long-held and passionate belief of all who toil at GFG HQ. To us, it’s a resounding statement of the obvious. We thought it was common knowledge. It looks, though, as if Co-op’s marketing

A few days ago I blogged about death and dying inside prison. If it’s the sort of thing that interests you at all, you’ll be interested in a post over at Jailhouselawyer’s blog. In most British prisons there are old men in their late sixties and seventies, at least three-quarters

An insight here into the Nigerian way of death. For mankind, death is an inevitable end. Whenever it comes, no matter the age of the dead, pains, sorrow and unquantifiable anguish are its accomplices. Ironically, this is simply not so for those in the business of coffin making and funeral

Funerals in Britain are customarily followed by eating and drinking. Are there any time-honoured foods served at funerals? Are there traditional regional variants? Are there any funeral-specific favourites — the sorts of food people associate most strongly with funerals? I’m not talking generic sausage rolls and eggy sandwiches here. Is