*Bob*

I wouldn't say 'past', exactly. I admit I don't, er, get out as often as I used to. Alas, being a parent and spending two days in nightclubs at the weekend don't mix too well.

annaj Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > This is exactly the kind of speculation I first > objected to. He was gay and so therefore it must > have been..... This is unfair, and inaccurate, at least as regards what I've said. It's not because 'Gately was gay'. It's because I've gone to more gay clubs than I care to remember; gone back to more flats than I care to remember - with randoms collected in said clubs to carry-on the party; and watched more people 'fall asleep' on sofas than I care to remember. People who needed to be 'checked-on'. Yes, I might be completely wrong, and no, I don't have all the facts but that doesn't stop my spider sense from tingling.

annaj Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > So, your guess might not be as spot on as you > think, *Bob*. I've no idea if it's spot on. That's why it's a guess. An educated guess. I still seriously hope I'm wrong, because The Mail will have a field day if I'm not.

sophiesofa Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > How on earth do luncgs fill up with fluid? Did he > drink too much liquid? I'm sure there are lots of possible reasons. Again, I know what my guess would be.

Wade in - if not specifically on SG, then on the wider point: As a gay man, has my speculation offended you?

I can't see the colours unfortunately. I only have a green screen Tandy TRS-80 in my bedsit.

*licks fingers and smooths back eyebrows* "Well hello."

Speculating about the death of someone in the public eye who died (as DC aptly put it) 'under mysterious circumstances', ie unexpectedly, is not the same as speculating about why there might be an ambulance outside the chip shop. Or whether someone walking down the road who looked a bit funny might or might not have got up to no good, had he not been chased off by a gang of pitchfork-wielding locals. That is a dubious comparison. We had twenty pages on Jacko. Untimately, this is no different. More speculation and conjecture: (look away now, if speculation and conjecture offends) If someone went to sleep on a sofa and was dead in the morning, why would it be initally descibed as 'a tragic accident'? When was the last time you needed to 'check on' someone who simply crashed on a sofa after a night on the lash?

I don't want it. I was a potential customer, but now they can stick their rugs where the sun don't shine.

RE The Rug Company Super rugs, perhaps, but I have a problem with companies who seem to have a problem with telling people how the things they sell cost. I don't care if it costs ?10, or ?10,000,000,000.. just stop pissing around and put a price on it. If you want me to 'email you for a price list', then quite frankly you can stick your rugs up your arse.

'Broadloom' definitely sounds worthy of investigation. I hadn't thought of that.. that is a good idea, CC.

Not snobby about Ikea (well, ok, I am.. but it is great for some things and the design ethos is fantastic) - but the size required is quite specific and there was nothing which came-up.

dulwichmum Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > perhaps when I am ready to throw away my current > rug I shall send you a PM (bats eyelashes)? Do you operate a one in, one out policy?

I looked at Woven Ground, and do likee very much, but alas, due to the non-standard sizing, the quoted cost was ?3675. Which is 'quite a lot'. However - *RUG NEWS*- Selfridges and John Lewis do custom sizes on a number of their rugs but the cost is calculated per square metre, not "ooh, it's bespoke, that'll be eight times a much, please".

You can telephone me anytime for a wild speculative guess.. that's all I'm offering, I'm afraid.

No-one has said anything about 'suspicious', BN5. But 'no cause of death' is a mystery, especially if you're only 33.

I don't agree with your definition of 'respect', dbboy. It's an internet thread about someone famous - in showbusiness - who has died in mysterious circumstances. What do you expect.. two minute's silence? Seriously? In any case, there's no point gossiping about something after the truth is established.

I honestly hope it isn't anything to do with G. Because it it is, it'll ram all the tabloids with stories about G, the evil 'gay drug' - and then you'll see some real 'judgement' for sure. However, I think we can safely rule-out the toast/electrocution and slipping on milk scenario.

Anna: GBL is not illegal.. not yet. (below from government 'Frank' website). Maybe by the end of the year. GBL.. is a legal product used in industry and probably available from other sources such as the internet. However, The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) which advises the government, has provisionally recommended that GBL should also be controlled as a Class C drug with consultation on a licensing arrangement for its use in industry. As for speculation (on my part anyway), judgement doesn't come into it. (Pot / kettle / black) It's just speculation. I'm sure his family, friends and the police will all be doing the same thing and have more important things to think about than reading speculative postings on here, or any of the other thousand places up and down the land.

It's shiny tat, DM. Worthless baubles and trinkets for those devoid of imagination wishing to buy into some tedious designer dream. ?50 today, 50p tomorrow.

It's speculative. It's a guess. It's idle gossip. However.. I've taken G, so I am fully aware of its effects (good and bad, obviously) It is popular with gay men. It is popular for it to be taken on holiday - where other drugs can't be taken - because it's not illegal and slips through customs in a innocuous shampoo bottle. It is popular for it to be taken on holiday by gay men. It does not mix with alcohol. G + Alcohol = fall asleep and not wake up. It disappears from the bloodstream rapidly, so there would be no suspicious circumstances, and cause of death would not be immediately apparent. So my wild, speculative guess, is that they went out drinking, met some dude in a bar, went back to their pad to party, ended-up taking some G (either his or theirs) and Stephen fell into a coma.

dulwichmum Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > You should go and talk to Maggie in MooToo. She > knows everything about everything. If the quality and style of her stock is anything to go by, I think I'd be better off talking to our cat.

iaineasy Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I reckon it sounds like a GHB overdose, My money's on G too.

Things are getting rugly. It appears that what we need, ideally, is a square rug. Imagine that! A Square rug. No-one makes square rugs: you have them individually hand-knitted by a Persian Princess in some boutique off the Kings Road for a hundred billion pounds. Where can I find a selection of square rugs, of places that do custom sizing with terrible expense?

X-Factor factoid from the last series.. "X Factor star Niki Evans said she was encouraged to cry over her dad's death while appearing on the programme last year, and claims she was voted off after she refused advice from judge Louis Walsh to sing Luther Vandross's Dance With My Father and cry afterwards." Hooray for the X-Factor!