AtHomeWithGloriaHunnifordOctober2016 - 155

FINAL WISHES ▲ instructions that they live in Chicago, Manhattan or San Francisco, so they could be exposed to the arts and architecture that such cities oﬀer. WOMEN TROUBLE But one man who was the complete opposite of The Hunger Games star was T M Zink, a lawyer from the American state of Iowa, who died in 1930. He had such a strong disdain for women that he wanted his savings to be used to establish a library that would allow no works by female authors or artists, and would prohibit female patrons. Mr Zink's daughter successfully challenged the will and, happily, the female-free learning zone was never built. If you think that's strange, get ready for the Burbank family from New Orleans, whose deceased mother went to her own funeral in 2014. Mum Miriam, who had lived her life to the max, 'joined' mourners at the funeral home, sitting at a table, glamorously dressed, with beer, whisky and cigarettes to hand. WORDS: FIONA WALSH, IMAGES: SHUTTERSTOCK, *SOURCE: WILCOX LIMOUSINES SURVEY COMPLETED BY 198 FUNERAL DIRECTORS. THE FUNNY SIDE Closer to home, 30-year-old John Smith from Halifax in Yorkshire was given a ﬁtting send-oﬀ. As he was huge fan of Only Fools And Horses, his father arranged a 'cushty' funeral with a hearse version of the iconic Reliant Regal threewheeler carrying John's coﬃn and played the theme music while the bereaved left the church. In true Trotter style, the exhaust fell oﬀ the van and began dragging and clanking along the ground, and the CD kept sticking. Fortunately, the family saw the funny side. While researching an article for The Guardian on how to organise a funeral, broadcaster Emma Freud asked people on Twitter if they knew of any good coﬃn-topper ideas. One response came from comedian Dom Joly: his friend had a bowl of houmous, as it was his favourite food. A hat-loving lady had her best headwear placed on top and the rest of her millinery collection hung at the ends of each pew in the church. Recollections of unusual funeral decorations from Twitter users GLORIA SAYS 'Speaking about your funeral to loved ones should be done in a jocular way, as it's still quite a taboo subject. Perhaps if you see something you like when you are out with family, such as ﬂowers, say "Hey, I'd love those at my funeral".' DON'T BE AFRAID TO COMMUNICATE YOUR PREFERRED FUNERAL PLANS included a coﬃn carrying knitted ﬂowers - as the deceased couldn't stand waste - bananas, a bottle of Guinness and a bag of crisps. In most countries, it's common for a person to be buried or cremated, but hundreds of years ago in Sichuan province, China, coﬃns were attached to the sides of a mountain. No one knows exactly why - but they're now a tourist attraction. And it is fortunate that some customs have died out as they weren't healthy for the living. In the South Paciﬁc island of Fiji, the deceased's loved ones would be strangled so that they could accompany the dead person into the hereafter. And in ancient India, a widow was forced to burn herself on her husband's pyre. LAST WORDS When it comes to last words, some people make profound statements, while others are just memorable. Casablanca star Humphrey Bogart allegedly was heard to say, 'I should never have switched from Scotch to martinis'; before falling into a coma. Winston Churchill proclaimed, 'Oh, I am so bored with it all', while Errol Flynn, known for his Hollywood party lifestyle, uttered, 'I've had a hell of a lot of fun and I've enjoyed every minute of it.' He died from a massive MIRIAM BURBANK 'JOINED' MOURNERS, SITTING AT A TABLE WITH BEER, WHISKY AND CIGARETTES TO HAND TOP 10 MOST UNUSUAL funeral music requests* 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 CELEBRATION - KOOL AND THE GANG FIRESTARTER - THE PRODIGY HIGHWAY TO HELL - AC/DC ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST - QUEEN ALWAYS LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE OF LIFE - MONTY PYTHON BURN BABY BURN (DISCO INFERNO) - THE TRAMMPS DON'T STOP ME NOW - QUEEN BENNY HILL - THEME TUNE TELETUBBIES - THEME TUNE DEAL OR NO DEAL - THEME TUNE heart attack at the age of 50 and was buried with six bottles of whisky. James 'Scotty' Doohan, David Bowie and Yorkshireman John Smith's families all wanted to give them a send-oﬀ that matched their personalities. Although this probably didn't ease the pain for their loved ones, it would have taken some of the stress out of this sad occasion. Perhaps this is the perfect time for you to sit down with your family and have that very personal chat. www.athomemagazine.co.uk NOVEMBER 2016 | 155 http://www.athomemagazine.co.uk

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