The recording was made live at the 1999 Samaritans Conference and is available as an audiotape from Maxine Carter, General Office, The Samaritans, 10 The Grove, Slough SL1 1QP. The content of the talk is excellent. Dr Murray-Parkes gives a clear and concise introduction to the types of problems that follow bereavement through death and the factors that make difficulties more likely and says a little about treatments available. He makes the point that many of the research findings can be applied to other forms of loss (Reference Murray-Parkes and MarkusMurray-Parkes & Markus, 1998). The tape really comes alive when he discusses case material. For example, a widow dreamed repeatedly of her husband falling off a cliff. With therapy she was able to change the ending of the dream so that he soared up to heaven, and the dream did not recur. The talk also includes one of the best jokes I have heard from a psychiatrist.

Sadly, the content is let down somewhat by the presentation. There is much distortion and whistling on the tape and the background noise was distracting. The recording would certainly have benefited from editing: the turnover break came in the middle of a sentence, and two deafening bursts of applause at the end of the tape precede some unnecessary house-keeping details about the conference.

Murray-Parkes is a clear thinker and conveys his message well. This tape would be useful for general practitioners and psychiatric trainees, as well as the original audience of Samaritans.

The joke? Murray-Parkes reminded us that not all marital relationships are close. A gentleman told the speaker that he had married his landlady, “because I was fed up having to share the lavatory with all the other tenants”. “Ah,” said the doctor, “you had a marriage of convenience.”