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Lightning Fame!

In 2003, Campbell went out jogging every Sunday morning. He was out with his friends Ray and Norman when suddenly the sky went black and a storm started. Campbell can't remember what happened next. The strike hit a gold chain around his neck and knocked him off his feet.

Only two people on the planet have been struck by lightning of this intensity and survived.

In an age of instant fame, I’m wondering if this is a career option some would choose?

In the world of someone who is the epitome of being famous for being famous, Victoria Beckham, life is very simple. There are photographic opportunities [every time you step out of the front door], and non-photographic opportunities [when asleep, not made up, or doing something you wouldn’t want to read about in the papers or see on the TV].

I suspect our jogger would probably put his experience in the latter category.

As Campbell was struck by the lightning, he was thrown through the air and landed with incredible force, smashing his face. His friends dragged him out of the deep puddle he landed in so he wouldn't drown but he had by now already suffered the electricity coursing throughout his body and was in critical shape. He suffered burns to his back, a smashed jaw and nose and his teeth were knocked out. His necklace had disintegrated.

So, had his particular friends not been around [one knew first aid], he probably would have died, and his death been classed as nothing out of the ordinary. For if no-one hears a tree crashing down in the distant forest, does it make a noise?

And he was quickly taken to hospital, where he remained unconscious for five days.

Jogging perhaps in the desert, or wilderness. Or in a place renowned for lightning strikes? No hospital in the vicinity. Another stroke of luck.

A bit like ‘capturing’ those unfortunate ‘accidents’ on video, and claiming your £250 when they appear on TV. Apparently, the place on the earth most struck by lightning, are mountains in east Congo in Africa. Not really suitable for fame-seekers.

Roy Sullivan was a U.S. park ranger in Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. Sullivan was hit by lightning on seven different occasions and survived all of them. In his lifetime he gained "Human Lightning Rod" as a nickname.. There is a road side plaque on Tanner's Ridge in Page County, Virginia that talks about him.

Roy clearly had a dilemma. He died over 20 years gao, so the chances are he would have not been afflicted by the disease of fame. Yet a national park was probably a good place to go for those wanting to take the lightning route to stardom.

However, on September 28, 1983, Sullivan died at age 71, of a self-inflicted gunshot wound , reportedly distraught over an unrequited love.

In 2007, the combination of being the human lightning rod, and killing yourself at the age of 71 from being distraught over love would propel you into the media stratosphere as quick as a lightning bolt comes down!

Just think what the tabloids would do with your nickname. But this strategy has clear flaws. It’s getting bit late to leave your bid until you are in your seventies, and as a corpse, your appearances on chat shows would be limited.

Let us return to the mind of the world teacher, MsBeckham. Her universe seems to be comprised of duality, things being one or the other, or come in pairs. To the fragrant Posh, a true fan must at least be reduced to tears of joy by her presence. To qualify as being one of the best fans of all however, you must pass out.

Are you beginning to think this fame thing has its drawbacks? But at least it is starting to even up the odds. Far better that the fans pass out than the celebrity checks out permanently!

Now we know from American politics, men have no chance of being elected if they are bald, comb their hair over, or wear a wig.

We read about Hillary Clinton, and for many observers her gender and being the wife of a past president is all that matters. What is missing from almost all of the coverage is her use of foul and abusive language to anyone who crosses her path, and to staff who serve her as a politician. And never mention that dozens of her and her husband’s friends, colleagues, employees and state officials investigating their murky past have been murdered, committed ‘suicide’ or suffered that truly American celebrity death, a plane crash.

But hey, who cares as long as it all looks good?

We need to lighten up here, quickly. The dark side is all very well, but bringing it out for a public airing can be terminally depressing. Oh, sod it, I’m off again.

Did you know that Liverpool at one time, over a few decades had a history of industrial disputes and unrest higher than anywhere else in the county? And Liverpool was built on the slave trade? And in the 1980’s the city was going nowhere, fast.

Is crap impossible to resist?

Campbell Gillespie's parents travelled down from Scotland after hearing of his accident to be at their son's bedside at Fazakerley [Liverpool] hospital.

I listened to him being interviewed on Radio Merseyside a couple of weeks ago. He had been warned by doctors he would never fully recover, and whatever happened he would certainly be impotent.

Whilst unconscious, he recalled dreaming of ‘going to heaven’ and saying to God he wanted to live, dying now was before his time. I know personally of a friend who had virtually the same experience, and there are many accounts of such phenomena from all corners of the globe.

The gold chain he wore that fateful day had a cross on it. He believed the presence of the cross had saved his life. The chain melted, but the cross remained intact. Campbell had come into the studio with his partner. For someone who had come far closer to death than almost all of us would like, Big Brother wannabees, next generation Spice Voids excepted, he talked as if it was just ‘one of those things.’

Is it possible to be grateful for our lives without having near-death experiences?

We live in a world where technology has outstripped our capacity to use it practically, safely, thoughtfully and efficiently. Most cars can go up to 100 mph, some 200 mph. The speed limit in the UK is 70 mph. The 40% extra speed is unnecessary, and again, save for the odd nutter is never used and pointless. We all know about the waste of electrical consumer goods which are designed to last a couple of years then become obsolete or less attractive [who decides this by the way?] than their replacement.

Near-death events like Campbell’s are rare, massively intense, and life-changing. The kind of ultimate high mobile phone and game manufacturers would love to duplicate. I can picture it now.

“You are lightning man! Become a legend at the touch of a button! Meet God! Die and come back to life!”

or more likely:

“You are lightning man! Waste your enemies with the power of 10 million volts! Send them to God and let Him sort them out!”

Liverpool and Merseyside people are renowned for their humour. In the city can be found amazing buildings and architecture. From it have emerged great comedians, actors, music, groups, ships, parks [Birkenhead Park was the model for New York’s Central Park] and sports teams. It has had more than its fair share of tragedies. As Carl Jung once declared [there is a stone bust in the city commemorating this]: ‘Liverpool is the pool of life.’

We can be grateful for our lives every day. We know relatively nothing about Campbell from the articles about him. Few of us, without direction from the producers of Big Brother or largesse from the Lottery, are down to have the kind of billion-to-one experience Campbell Gillespie did four years ago. Even fewer of us are likely to become the human lightning rod unless we consider a porn career as an option, but again, there’s very little [mainstream] fame in that at present.

On New Year’s Eve, at 12.23am at Liverpool Women’s Hospital Brogan Thomas Alexander was born to mother Hazel Topping. New Years Day 2008 is the first day of Liverpool’s year as the European Capital of Culture.

After the birth, his sales executive father Campbell Gillespie said: “ God could have taken me four years ago, but now he has given me a wonderful miracle.”

The area of Liverpool the lightning strike occurred in 2003 was Waterloo. Who said God didn’t have sense of irony?

Jack Stewart, January 2008.