ALAN RICKMAN

We saw the newest Harry Potter movie last week. It's okay - not mind-shatteringly good but engaging enough. The brightest spark for me, in Harry Potter tales, is Alan Rickman. He may not be on screen very often, for for long, but you can't ignore him - he's the focus of all attention no matter who else shares the screen. It has always been this way for Alan Rickman.





The first time I was aware of him, and have never forgotten, was his role as Sheriff of Nottingham to Kevin Costner's rather effete Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves. He "owns" the screen whenever he appears, whatever the plot, however minor his character. It's a gift few possess. I wonder whether it can be traced in a natal chart?

I'm not going to waffle on about all the many, many roles Rickman has played. Tiscali's biography, one of the best on-line, can fill in the detail. The quotes below come from this source (linked below the post).

Alan Rickman was born in Hammersmith, London, UK on 21 February 1946. Time of birth not known, so in the chart below the rising sign isn't accurate. Exact placement of the Moon would be between late Libra, if born before 6am, and early Scorpio for a later birthtime.




When I first looked at this natal chart I thought, I bet this guy can draw and paint. Sun and two closest personal planets, Mercury and Venus (planet of the arts), all in Pisces (ruled by Neptune planet of creativity and imagination). As it happens I was right! Rickman started out as a graphic artist.

As a child, he was bright, and artistic, capable of excellent calligraphy and watercolour painting..........

Rickman loved acting, but his other artistic talents led him towards graphic design - certainly a safer occupation. "Drama school," he says "wasn't considered the sensible thing to do at 18". So he enrolled at the Chelsea College Of Art And Design, later spending a year at the Royal College Of Art. It was at Chelsea that he met Rima Horton, still his partner today.

Acting came to the fore a little later, and the rest (to use a well-worn cliche) is history.

But why is it that the roles Rickman is asked to play seem to follow a particular pattern? These are almost always dark, sinister, and threatening at worst, sarcastic and sneering at best. Liam Neeson, another wonderful actor, who I think shares a similar facial look, doesn't usually get offered that kind of role.



Where is the darkness in Rickman's natal chart - or rather the ability to portray the sinister characters so convincingly? By all accounts, in real life, Rickman isn't in the least threatening or sinister.
First of all, anyone with prominent Pisces will have the most vivid of imaginations - first step to being able to portray what they can imagine. This Rickman has. But in addition, and importantly, there's a Yod (Finger of Fate) with its apex pointing to the Sun, Mercury and Venus in Pisces, the sextile at its base links Neptune (planet of creativity and ruler of Pisces) and Pluto (planet of power and darkness) to the personal planets via two quincunx aspects.This type of formation is said to channel the natures of the sextiled planets through those at the apex. In this case via Pisces' vivid imagination and acting, Pluto's sinister side can be seen.

A look at Rickman's filmography convinces me that he's a hard worker - Saturn conjunct Mars in his natal chart underlines this. Energy and a rigid self discipline are both fairly foreign to Pisces, so in Rickman's case his Mars/Saturn conjunction provides a useful balance to his more dreamy, artistic side. These two planets are in Cancer another Water sign and harmonious with Pisces, so although they bring a different facet to his nature, there's no conflict.



When approaching the chart of an actor, I usually expect to see some prominent Leo. Here there's only Pluto - the generational planet in Leo, but it's always possible that Leo was rising. Otherwise, in Rickman's case, although he loves the stage and the screen, and they both love him, I suspect the source of his skill is his imaginative core, deriving from a good helping of Pisces.

It's been said that Rickman is an actor with "the perfect voice". That's a subjective assessment. Sam Elliott's voice makes my toes curl, but I have to admit that Alan Rickman, reciting this short poem for peace, gave me goosebumps. Oh yes, and he's a keen supporter of left-wing politics, for which he deserves my Gold Star!



TISCALI Bio of Alan Rickman

Photographs from the top: The real Alan Rickman; as Severus Snape, Professor of Potions in Harry Potter movies; as Sheriff of Nottingham in "Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves"; as Judge Turpin in "Sweeney Todd the Demon Barber"; as Hans Gruber in "Die Hard".