The delicate issue of how we wish to be remembered when we're gone has risen again in the shape of Sir Jimmy Savile's triple-width headstone at a cemetery in Scarborough.
Overlooking the bay, the four-foot tall, 18-inch wide stone comes complete with etchings of the late DJ and television presenter at different stages in his career, a list of the charities for which he raised £45 million, a poem about his life featuring many of his catchphrases – and a potted biography containing a spelling mistake.
The unfortunate misspelling of "Chieftan of the Lochaber Highland Games" threatened to overshadow the actual content of the Savile life story when the £4000 headstone spanning three plots was unveiled this week. It will of course be rectified, and it will leave the world in no doubt about the original purpose of this stone: to remind us that here was a man who mattered. His family say they expect the plot to be popular with pilgrims – sorry, fans – who will continue to throng the site to pay their respects, and that its width is to prevent them treading on anyone else's remains. They even joked that they expected an ice cream stall to set up nearby.
And yet Savile himself reportedly said he would never have a headstone because he wasn't going anywhere, and that he knew nothing lasts forever.
Accepting the death of a loved one is difficult for everyone left behind, and of course we want them to be remembered, as most of us hope to be when our turn comes. But as headstones in general become ever more flamboyant, personal and expensive, maybe it is a timely opportunity to reflect on who we really think we are. After all, if you'll pardon the pun, death is the great leveller – even of fame and fortune.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article