Necrology, October 2010

Necrology – a list of notable people who have died recently

Melvin Brieseman, 1934-2010
Canterbury Medical Officer of Health for 30 years
Solomon Burke, 1940-2010
Soul singer, evangelist and undertaker whose music career was revitalised in the new millennium
Stephen Cannell, 1941-2010
Writer, producer and director who brought his subversive gifts to The Rockford Files and The A-Team
Philippa Foot, 1920-2010
Philosopher who challenged the notion of moral relativism and addressed the hot topic of medical ethics
Eva Ibbotson, 1925-2010
Children’s author of magical adventure stories who drew on her memories of life as a refugee
Simon MacCorkindale, 1952-2010
Actor who specialised in roguish charmers and was once hailed as the new Errol Flynn
Benoit Mandelbrot, 1924-2010
Mathematician and father of fractal theory who developed a new way of looking at the world
John Masters, 1934-2010
Christchurch war hero
Claire Rayner, 1931-2010
Writer, broadcaster and agony aunt who drew on her own experiences to tackle every topic with matronly assurance
Brian Southam, 1931-2010
Publisher and leading expert on the work of Jane Austen who authenticated the author’s only known play
Joseph Stein, 1912-2010
Social worker who became a Broadway writer and turned a set of Jewish stories into Fiddler on the Roof
Joan Sutherland, 1926-2010
One of the most celebrated opera singers of all time
Norman Wisdom, 1915-2010
Britain’s most successful screen comic after Chaplin, whose slapstick talents won him affection around the world