Irish Examiner view: Mystic Meg's fame embodied a different time and place

Celebrity astrologer Mystic Meg, who passed away this week, became a familiar part of popular culture.

Mystic Meg belonged to an age in which celebrity astrologists could be known to millions by a nickname.

Faith in the power of astrology may vary among readers, but the power of one astrologer in recent decades was a matter of fact rather than belief.

Mystic Meg, who passed away this week at the age of 80, was the best-known astrologer of her day. Her real name was Margaret Lake, but she belonged to an age in which celebrity astrologists could be known to millions by a nickname and a first name — an age in which celebrity astrologers existed, full stop.