Latest News

• 29th December 2020

  Another Fashion Victim

  

  Fashion designer, Pierre Cardin, has become the 20th success for the record breaking DeathList 2020. Cardin was born in Italy but moved to France as a young child, founding his fashion house in Paris in 1950. Cardin’s reputation grew through the 1950s. In the early 1960s, the Beatles wore his collarless/lapelless jackets. Late in the 60s, Cardin started to licence his name as a brand, extending well beyond clothing. His apparently lax approach to licencing his name over the next decades attracted criticism and, although it made him a household name, his brand lost credibility. Cardin was making his 6th appearance on DeathList this year, in 9th position. Cardin was 98 when he passed.
  6 appearances: 2020 (9), 2019 (10), 2018 (12), 2017 (8), 2011 (43), 2009 (41)
  

  20th Death

  Age: 98, Fashion Designer, Cause of death: TBA

• 25th December 2020

  Edrich Hits Another Boundary

  

  English cricketer, John Edrich, has chalked up another score for DeathList 2020. Edrich was a batsman who played test match cricket for England in the 1960s and 70s. His highest test score was 310 not out in 1965, which, at the time, was the eighth highest individual test score of all time. Edrich played county cricket for Surrey for the whole of his career, during which he scored 103 first class centuries. Edrich was diagnosed with a form of leukaemia in 2000, although, several years later, claimed to have beaten it. Edrich was making his third appearance on DeathList, this year at number 33 and was 83 when he passed. He marks the 19th death for DeathList 2020.
  3 appearances: 2020 (33), 2011 (11), 2010 (23)
  

  19th Death

  Age: 83, Cricketer, Cause of death: Natural Causes

• 3rd December 2020

  Discard Giscard

  

  Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, former president of France, has provided DeathList 2020 with its 18th hit and in doing so sends the 2020 list into the record books. Not content with that, Giscard was also the second candidate to pass while suffering from Covid-19. Giscard’s political career started in the 1950s, working his way up the ladder until being elected president in 1974. He held the office until 1981 when he was defeated by François Mitterrand. He continued to have an active political career for the next 20 years. In September 2020, he was admitted to hospital with a lung infection which was “not related to Covid-19” and then released. However, he was hospitalised again in November and finally the “China Virus” appears to have added its own record, taking down the 94-year-old. Giscard was making his third appearance on DeathList – this year at number 19. Can DeathList 2020 push the bar even higher in the remaining days of this unprecedented year?
  3 appearances: 2020 (19), 2019 (32), 2018 (32)
  

  18th Death

  Age: 94, Former French President, Cause of death: Covid-19

• 13th November 2020

  The Yorkshire Reaper gets his man

  

  Peter Sutcliffe, otherwise known as the Yorkshire Ripper, one of Britain’s premier serial killers, has produced a swathe of achievements in his passing. Firstly, he is one of those rare universally welcomed deaths. Secondly, he was the holder of the sometimes-prized number 50 position on DeathList. Thirdly he was the first DeathList candidate to die from Covid-19. Finally, he is the death that draws DeathList 2020 equal to the previous highest score of 17 successes. As for Sutcliffe’s previous “achievements”, he was a modern day, Jack the Ripper, murdering at least 13 women in the later 1970s. He was pursued by bungling British police, who interviewed him nine times before realising he might be their guy. Sutcliffe was convicted in 1981 and remained in prison and mental health facilities for the rest of his life, suffering a number of serious attacks to his person during that time. Sutcliffe was 74 years old and was making his first appearance on DeathList.
  1 appearance: 2020 (50)
  

  17th Death

  Age: 74, Yorkshire Ripper, Cause of death: Covid-19

• 8th November 2020

  DeathList Successes for $200, Alex

  

  Alex Trebek, host of long running gameshow Jeopardy!, has read out his last categories at the age of 80. Trebek’s career in gameshow hosting started in the early 70s, hosting a number of different shows until 1984, when he took over as host of Jeopardy! Trebek hosted more than 8,000 episodes of the show and will continue to do so for a couple of months after his death due to the number of pre-recorded episodes. It was announced that Trebek had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in March 2019, the illness that would eventually kill him. Trebek was making his first appearance on DeathList, selected at number 25.
  1 appearance: 2020 (35)
  

  16th Death

  Age: 80, Jeopardy Host, Cause of death: Pancreatic Cancer

• 30th October 2020

  Nobby’s final pass

  

  English footballer, Nobby Stiles, has passed away aged 78. Stiles signed as an apprentice with Manchester United in 1959 and went on to have a long career at the club, winning the European Cup in 1967. Stiles made his debut for England in 1965 and had become a permanent fixture in the team by the 1966 World Cup, which England went on to win. One of the most memorable images of Stiles is him dancing carrying the world cup having removed his false front teeth. After retiring, Stiles had a short career in football management. In his later years, Stiles suffered from prostate cancer and advanced dementia, which has been suggested as being linked to brain injury from regularly heading footballs in the 1960s and 70s. Stiles was making his third appearance on DeathList, this year at number 24.
  3 appearances: 2020 (24), 2019 (27), 2017 (23)
  

  15th Death

  Age: 78, Footballer, Cause of death: Cancer/Dementia

• 19th September 2020

  Justice is done

  

  Ruth Bader Ginsburg has passed on aged 87 to add another number to the DeathList 2020 score. Ginsberg was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court from 1993 when she was nominated by Bill Clinton until her death. Throughout her career she defended civil liberties, equality and reproductive rights and became known as RBG. Ginsberg was making her first appearance on DeathList in 38th place.
  1 appearance: 2020 (38)
  

  14th Death

  Age: 87, US Supreme Court Justice, Cause of death: Pancreatic Cancer

• 15th September 2020

  Pearly Gates for Gates

  

  William H Gates, philanthropist and father of Bill Gates, has provided DeathList 2020 with another score. Gates Senior was a successful attorney. In 1994 Gates retired from his law practise and started to run what would become the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation with funds of $5 billion. In 2018 it was announced that Gates was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, which would eventually lead to his death. Gates Senior was making his first appearance on DeathList, being nominated at number 48. He was 94.
  1 appearance: 2020 (48)
  

  13th Death

  Age: 95, Bill Gates Senior, Cause of death: Alzheimer’s disease,

• 26th July 2020

  Final nomination for de Havilland

  

  Hollywood great, Olivia de Havilland, has provided DeathList with another success after years of persistent selection. De Havilland passed at the grand old age of 104. The peak of De Havilland’s movie career was in the 40s and 50s, when she made a number of movies alongside Errol Flynn and starred in her most famous movie, Gone with the Wind. Throughout her career she was nominated for five Oscars, winning of two occasions. De Havilland was making her 13th appearance on DeathList – unlucky for her. This year she was number 3 on the list.
  13 appearances: 2020 (3), 2019 (3), 2018 (4), 2017 (10), 2016 (4), 2015 (6), 2014 (10), 2013 (18), 2012 (20), 2011 (8), 2010 (15), 2007 (26), 2005 (42)
  

  12th Death

  Age: 104, Actress, Cause of death: Old Age

• 30th June 2020

  Carl no longer as right as Reiner

  

  Carl Reiner, veteran comedy TV and movie director, has provided DeathList 2020 with another point. In 1960 Reiner started a comedy partnership with Mel Brooks and they remained good friends for the rest of his life. Reiner’s fame grew in the 1960s when he developed The Dick Van Dyke Show which became a huge hit and made major stars of DeathList favourites Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore. In the late 70s Reiner directed and co-write a series of movies, including The Jerk, that also made Steve Martin a major star. Reiner had three children form a 64-year marriage to Estelle Lebost, one of whom is Rob Reiner. Reiner remained active until his death at the age of 98, still regularly tweeting into his last days. Reiner was making his first appearance on DeathList in 2020, entering at number 40.
  1 appearance: 2020 (40)
  

  11th Death

  Age: 98, Movie Director, Cause of death: Old Age

• 18th June 2020

  End of a Vera

  

  The Forces Sweetheart, Vera Lynn has passed on at the age of 103 to provide DeathList 2020 with another success. Lynn was a singer and entertainer who became famous for appearing at outdoor concerts for British troops based overseas during the Second World War. She is most famous for singing “We’ll Meet Again” and “White Cliffs of Dover”. After the war, Lynn had some success as a recording artist and appeared regularly on TV. Lynn was making her twelfth appearance on DeathList, this year rising to fourth place.
  12 appearances: 2020 (4), 2019 (6), 2018 (23), 2017 (2), 2016 (28), 2015 (47), 2014 (21), 2013 (21), 2011 (44), 2008 (21), 2007 (28), 2006 (29)
  

  10th Death

  Age: 103, Singer, Cause of death: Old Age

• 11th May 2020

  Serenity now for Stiller

  

  Comic actor, Jerry Stiller, has added to DeathList 2020’s score, passing aged 92. Stiller had a long career in TV and movies, but it wasn’t until the 1990s that he found the role that he become most famous for, that being short-tempered Frank Costanza in Seinfeld. After Seinfeld ended, Stiller landed a role as Arthur Spooner in tv show, King of Queens, which ran for 9 years. Stiller was married to Anne Meara for 60 years until her death is 2015 and they had two children, one of whom is actor, Ben Stiller. Stiller Senior was making his second appearance on DeathList, this year at number 32.
  2 appearances: 2020 (32), 2019 (13)
  

  9th Death

  Age: 93, Actor, Cause of death: Natural Causes

• 12th April 2020

  Moss takes the chequered flag

  

  Legendary British racing driver, Stirling Moss, has parked up for the last time to provide DeathList 2020 with another score. Moss drove competitively from 1948 to 1962, driving in a wide variety of races including 16 victories out of 66 starts in Formula 1. However, he never won the Formula 1 championship despite finishing in the top three seven years in a row. As a result, he was often referred to as the best driver never to have won the championship. Moss retired in 1962 after a crash left him in a coma for a month. Moss continued to stay somewhat in the public eye in retirement until 2018 when after an illness he fully retired from public life. Moss passed away aged 90, this year at number 27 while making his third appearance on the list. The juggernaut that is DeathList 2020 rolls on...
  3 appearances: 2020 (27), 2019 (22), 2018 (14)
  

  8th Death

  Age: 91, Racing driver, Cause of death: TBA

• 6th April 2020

  Honor's a Goner

  

  British actress, Honor Blackman, has passed away of natural causes at the age of 94. Blackman’s career in movies started in the late 1940s, appearing in many TV and cinema movies in the 1950s. In 1962 Blackman landed the role of Dr Cathy Gale in British espionage TV show, The Avengers, which significantly raised her profile. In 1963, she starred in the movie, Jason and The Argonauts, but her most famous role came in 1964 when she played the innocently named Pussy Galore in the James Bond movie, Goldfinger. Blackman also had some minor success as a singer, particularly with a single, Kinky Boots, in 1964 with Avengers co-star Patrick Macnee, which went on to become a chart hit in the UK in 1990. Blackman was making her fourth appearance on DeathList and was chosen at number 20 this year.
  4 appearances: 2020 (20), 2019 (29), 2018 (28), 2017 (29)
  

  7th Death

  Age: 95, Actress, Cause of death: Natural Causes

• 14th March 2020

  P-Orridge has had h/er oats

  

  British musician, Genesis P-Orridge, has provided DeathList 2020 with a further success. Born Neil Megson, P-Orridge changed his name in 1971 by deed poll as he developed into an avant-garde artist. He formed the pioneering industrial band, Throbbing Gristle, in 1975 and achieved some success on the peripheries of the punk scene. Following the breakup of Throbbing Gristle in 1981, P-Orridge formed Psychic TV, who went on to release over 100 full length albums. P-Orridge did not identify as male or female, instead preferring to be referred to as h/er, s/he or they. P-Orridge was diagnosed with leukaemia in 2017. They passed away aged 70, making their first appearance on DeathList, at the 26 spot.
  1 appearance: 2020 (26)
  

  6th Death

  Age: 70, Psychic TV Singer Songwriter, Cause of death: Leukaemia

• 5th March 2020

  Perez de Cuellar joins the UNDead

  

  Former UN Secretary General, Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, has passed at the age of 100 to give DeathList 2020 another success. Pérez de Cuéllar was born in Peru and started his career as a diplomat in 1940. In 1971, he became a member of the Peruvian delegation to the General Assembly of the United Nations and rose to become Secretary General in 1982, a position he held for 10 years. In 2000 he took over as interim Prime Minster of Peru until mid-2001. Pérez de Cuéllar was making his seventh appearance on DeathList, climbing to 7th place this year.
  7 appearances: 2020 (7), 2019 (14), 2018 (11), 2017 (19), 2016 (8), 2015 (7), 2014 (29)
  

  5th Death

  Age: 100, Ex UN Secretary General, Cause of death: TBA

• 25th February 2020

  Death on the Nile

  

  Former Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak, has dodged his last bullet to provide DeathList 2020 with hit number 4. Mubarak started his career in the Egyptian Air Force and rose through the ranks to become Deputy Minister of Defence in 1973. In 1975 Mubarak was appointed Vice President of Egypt by Anwar Sadat. In 1981, Sadat was assassinated while Mubarak was present, paving the way for Mubarak to become president, a position he would then hold for 30 years. His time in power was marked by elections in which he stood unopposed and accusations of human rights abuses and state and personal corruption. Mubarak was finally forced to leave office during the Arab Spring uprising in 2011. IN his later years, Mubarak faced several trials for charges ranges from murder to embezzlement and spent time in jail. Mubarak died age 91, while making his seventh appearance, this year selected at number 25.
  7 appearances: 2020 (25), 2019 (20), 2018 (37), 2017 (39), 2015 (39), 2013 (15), 2012 (25)
  

  4th Death

  Age: 92, Former Egyptian President, Cause of death: TBA

• 5th February 2020

  Kirk Out

  

  The closing titles have finally rolled on Hollywood legend, Kirk Douglas, repaying 18 years of DeathList selection, including three years at number one. Douglas passed away aged 103, having moved down to this year’s number two spot. Douglas’ movie career started in the 1940s and he was to become a major figure in the golden years of Hollywood, starring in his most famous movie, Spartacus, in 1960. He was nominated for Oscars on three occasions and received an honorary Oscar in 1996. From his first marriage he had two sons, including Michael Douglas who become a major star in his own right. In 1991 he was in a helicopter accident but suffered relatively minor injuries. In 1996 he suffered a significant stroke but, in time, recovered the ability to speak. He then went on to survive a further 24 years. He is the third death for DeathList 2020.
  18 appearances: 2020 (2), 2019 (1), 2018 (1), 2017 (1), 2016 (10), 2015 (15), 2014 (23), 2013 (17), 2012 (10), 2011 (4), 2010 (11), 2009 (16), 2008 (16), 2007 (25), 2006 (25), 2004 (42), 2002 (45), 1997 (43)
  

  3rd Death

  Age: 104, Actor, Cause of death: TBA

• 4th February 2020

  That’s arap for Moi

  

  Daniel arap Moi, former president of Kenya, has passed on at the age of 95 to provide DeathList 2020 with its second success. Moi started his career as a teacher before moving into politics in the 1950s. After Kenyan independence in 1963 he joined the Kanu party and became minister of home affairs, later progressing to vice president. He became the 2nd present of Kenya in 1978. Moi was initially seen as a unifier of the country who could lead it away from political corruption. However, with opposition political parties now banned, Moi soon started to rule with repression and brutality. Under Moi’s leadership, Kanu had a spectacular performance in the three elections in 1979, 1983 and 1988 winning all seats (against no opposition). In time, however Moi’s political allies turned against him and his plans for a personally selected candidate to succeed him in 2002 backfired with the Kanu party losing power. In the later period of his presidency, stories of corruption and human rights abuses began to be reported, including suggestions that he had misappropriated more than $1 billion of public money. Moi was making his first appearance on DeathList, jumping straight in at number 5.
  1 appearance: 2020 (5)
  

  2nd Death

  Age: 96, Former President of Kenya, Cause of death: Old age

• 22nd January 2020

  Terry Jones is no more

  

  Monty Python member, Terry Jones, has ceased to be and put the first mark on the scoreboard for DeathList 2020. Jones’ career started in the late 1960s with several roles including being a writer for TV show, The Frost Report. In 1969 he started working with the other five Pythons to create the BBC TV show Monty Python’s Flying Circus. Jones often dressed up as middle age women or the famous nude organist. When Python moved on to make movies, Jones co-directed Monty Python and the Holy Grail and was the sole director of Life of Brian and The Meaning of Life. Some of his most famous characters onscreen were Brian’s mother and the silent hermit in Life of Brian and Mr Creosote in Meaning of Life. As Monty Python wound down, Jones went on to create Ripping Yarns TV show with Michael Palin and various TV shows and movies, including writing the screenplay for Labyrinth. Jones announced in 2016 that he had been diagnosed with a form of dementia, a condition that ultimately lead to his demise. He died aged 77, making his first appearance on the list, selected at number 45.
  1 appearance: 2020 (45)
  

  1st Death

  Age: 78, Monty Python, Cause of death: Dementia complications