The inimitable astrologer, author, publisher, and teacher Frank Clifford joins host Jenn Zahrt from London for our second podiversary!! Make a cuppa and join the duo for a fun episode filled with books, personal stories (The Mountain Astrologer! Tad Mann! Steven Forrest! Lois Rodden! Solar Fire! Melanie Reinhart!), and more, including: devouring data texts; navigating astrological politics; selecting the name for the Astro-Databank; deets on the London School of Astrology; correcting misleading online astro info; and books for the thinking astrologer! All that, plus: hand reading, Mars on the...
The inimitable astrologer, author, publisher, and teacher Frank Clifford joins host Jenn Zahrt from London for our second podiversary!! Make a cuppa and join the duo for a fun episode filled with books, personal stories (The Mountain Astrologer! Tad Mann! Steven Forrest! Lois Rodden! Solar Fire! Melanie Reinhart!), and more, including: devouring data texts; navigating astrological politics; selecting the name for the Astro-Databank; deets on the London School of Astrology; correcting misleading online astro info; and books for the thinking astrologer! All that, plus: hand reading, Mars on the Midheaven, and… what do you want your legacy to be??
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Transcripts available upon request.
Song “Wake Up” used with permission by The E-Block Band.
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Episode timestamps (conversation recorded April 2025):
00:01 – Happy birthday, Within Orb!
01:12 – Frank Clifford has built an eclectic, 35-year career as the writer of a dozen books, a consultant astrologer and palmist, a publisher/editor, a researcher of birth data, and the Principal of the London School of Astrology, which has branches in China and Japan. In 2012, he was the youngest recipient of a lifetime honour from the Astrological Association for his contribution to astrology, and a writing award from ISAR and various ISAR and Regulus Award (UAC) nominations have since followed. In mid-2025 he is relaunching The Mountain Astrologer magazine as a multi-media publication.
03:59 – Frank’s first astrology books included two from Linda Goodman (Sun Signs and Relationship Signs), texts by Bernard Fitzwalter, and Derek and Julia Parker’s The Compleat Astrologer.
08:11 – If Frank could bring only three books to a henge in northern Scotland, his first pick would be Profiles of Women: A Collection of Astrological Biographies by Lois Rodden.
11:34 – Can you work in the remote location? You betcha! Bringing an editing pencil, Frank’s second and third choices would be his very own British Entertainers: The Astrological Profiles and The Book of Music Horoscopes.
13:16 – Interlude: Join the CAELi Support Drive and for only $35, you can enjoy your morning beverage out of a gorgeous CAELi mug!
14:02 – Frank shares his experience creating data books!
17:47 – Hear about the London School of Astrology, home to 14,000 students!
18:51 – For beginners, Frank’s top three recommendations are: The Contemporary Astrologer's Handbook: An In-Depth Guide to Interpreting Your Horoscope by Sue Tompkins, The Knot of Time: Astrology and Female Experience by Lindsay River and Sally Gillespie, and Cosmic Loom: The New Science of Astrology by Dennis Elwell. But a hat tip also goes to Astrology in the Year Zero by Garry Phillipson (once published by Frank’s own Flare Publications and soon to be released by the Sophia Centre Press!) and True as the Stars Above: Adventures in Modern Astrology by Neil Spencer.
26:34 – Find Frank at The London School of Astrology website: https://www.londonschoolofastrology.com/.
29:28 – Thanks for listening to Within Orb! If you love the show, please help support it at no cost to you: Follow or subscribe wherever you listen, rate it five stars, or write a happy review! And if you’d like to become a CAELi member or support our work with a contribution of any amount, we’d be delighted – thanks!
Show notes and production by Jen Braun of JJ Boots Productions LLC.
