One of the UK's most famous astrologists, Mystic Meg, has sadly passed away aged 80.
She rose to fame with her winning predictions on the National Lottery in the 1990s and wrote horoscopes for the Sun for more than two decades.
Her horoscopes and clairvoyant messages captured the imagination of the public and she received huge amounts of correspondence - including from angry Manchester United fans after she correctly predicted their team would lose to Everton in the FA Cup final in 1995.
Who was Mystic Meg?
Born Margaret Anne Lake, but known to most as Mystic Meg, she was one of the UK’s most famous astrologists. Mystic Meg was born in 1942 in Lancashire and raised in a terraced house in the town of Accrington where her Romany grandmother taught her astrology.
Meg, who was a Leo, reportedly lived alone in Notting Hill, sharing her flat with seven cats that she said "found her" and moved in.
Health was of great importance to the star - away from the glitz and glamour - or should we say stars - the clean-living vegan harboured worries about her weight and wrinkles.
Andi Peters and Mystic Meg on stage at the Live and Kicking Red Nose Awards show broadcast in 1995 (Comic Relief via Getty Images)"I take a multivitamin, vitamin E, wild yam capsules and a co-enzyme Q10. I also take herbal drops, echinacea to boost the immune system and ginkgo biloba to protect the memory," she told the Lancashire Telegraph.
"I try to stay with a vegan style of eating and... try to avoid all animal products. I think about nutrition. I've noticed that when I visit vegetarian shops, none of the customers are overweight."
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How did Mystic Meg’s career start?
She was perhaps best-known for presenting Mystic Meg Predicts on the National Lottery from 1994 to 2000, which aired on BBC One. However that’s not exactly how she started her journey to be one of UK’s top astrologists.
After studying English at the University of Leeds, she joined the News of the World as a sub-editor and worked her way up to deputy editor of its weekend colour supplement, Sunday.
By the mid-eighties she'd changed her name to Meg Markova and was the paper's regular astrologer, where freelance photographer David Porter recalled her personality being as out-there as her appearance.
"She hardly ever spoke, and when she did it was in a strange whispered monotone," he once wrote for the Deptford Pudding blog.
"She had the whitest skin I'd ever seen, and seemed to glide silently around the office without touching the floor." He continued on to say.
In the early eighties Mystic meg delivered psychic readings over the phone, but what really propelled her into the spotlight was when she got her role fronting The National Lottery in 1994.
On the show, Mystic Meg would deliver a 45-second reading during which she attempted to predict facts about the future lottery winner, before the numbers were drawn.
What did people think of Mystic Meg?
The horoscope expert’s agent of 34 years, Dave Shapland, announced the news of Mystic Meg’s passing on Thursday (March 9), stating: “Without any question, she was Britain’s most famous astrologer by a million miles.
“Nobody came close to Meg in that respect. She was followed by millions in this country and also around the world. She even became part of the English language – if a politician, somebody from showbiz or ordinary people in the street are asked a tricky question they will say ‘Who do you think I am, Mystic Meg?’
Shapland spoke to the The Sun, saying: “It shows what an impact she made.”
“We have lost an icon,” Sun editor Victoria Newton said. “She was a total legend. We loved her and so did our readers.”
Newton continued: “For more than two decades Mystic Meg has been a must read column and cemented her as Britain’s most famous astrologer. She was a true professional whose guidance helped our readers daily - our postbag bears testament to this.
“One of my favourite memories of Meg is when all the Spice Girls came to the office, just as they were riding high at number one. We planned a tour for them, but all they wanted to do was meet Mystic Meg."
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How did Mystic Meg die?
Meg's agent confirmed her death at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington in the early hours of this morning after she was admitted with the flu a month ago.
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