Friday December 6th 2002 - edited by Bernard Fitzwalter ~ AstroDiary ~ If you get up early and look carefully you can now see Venus and Mars close together in the sky. Venus is starting to pull away from Mars ever so slightly. They are breaking away from each other before their union has been fully consummated. This is actually a very rare occurrence. Venus and Mars get together at least one year in two, but the last time Venus slipped away from Mars like this was in 1957. The celestial lovers will be back together in 2004. And for lovers in real-life the proximity of these two planets in the same part of the zodiac – Scorpio – will have created a very powerful emotional atmosphere. Many, many people will have found their own lives affected by it. Not just Scorpios, either. Anyone in their middle-40s now will have been born when Neptune, planet of dreams and fantasies, was in early Scorpio, so the antics of Venus and Mars over the last few months may have released all sorts of previously hidden desires. And anyone in their middle-20s now will have been born with Uranus, planet of surprises, in early Scorpio too so the same sort of thing applies. The Sun and Jupiter are nicely aligned for most of the coming week. This is a happy and fortunate combination, and should put everybody in a festive mood as Christmas approaches. AstroDiary Wednesday December 11th: The Star of Bethlehem, Maggie Hyde; 7.30-9.30, 4 Marty's Yard, 17 Hampstead High Street, London NW3. £5. Please double-check with the organisation before attending any events listed here - we cannot accept any responsibility for events changed/cancelled. Are you holding an astrological event - especially one outside London!! - that you would like others to know about? Write to jon@bubble.com with subject heading: Astro Events with website links. Please note - we cannot promise to include ALL submissions but will do our best. New Service is Top for the Charts The Astrological Association of Great Britain is proud to announce that you can now speak LIVE to an expert astrologer. For an instant in-depth telephone consultation about your full horoscope call 0845 120 1416 or +44 207 436 9101 (a confidential 30-minute reading costs £29.50, payable by credit card. Or cheque/postal order from UK.) Lines are open 9am-9pm GMT, Monday to Friday. A few weeks ago, the Astrological Association of Great Britain launched this new, live fixed-fee, telephone chart reading service. It has since proved big hit with callers from all over the world. AA President Roy Gillett told Astro News: "I am delighted with the warm response that we have had. Once, if you wanted a reading of your full birth chart, you would have to struggle to find a genuine, reputable astrologer. Then, you would have had to make an appointment and travel miles. Now, at last, there's a quick and easy way to get your questions answered by a real expert - from the comfort of your own home." Mirror reader Julie Roberts from Rochester was equally enthusiastic. "I rang last Tuesday and spoke to an astrologer called Maria. Within moments, she was telling me details about my childhood that she could not possibly have known... then she said some fascinating things about my future. If you missed any of Friday's Astronews articles, click here for Astronews Archives