Tim Cross

Major General Timothy Cross, CBE (born 19 April 1951) is a retired British Army officer and military logistics expert. He was commissioned in 1971 into the Royal Army Ordnance Corps and went on to serve in Germany, Northern Ireland and Cyprus, interspersed with staff duties and further education. He was posted to Paris in 1984, where he was involved in the development of the MILAN anti-tank weapon, before returning to his regiment as a company commander. He took command of 1 Ordnance Battalion in 1990 and was tasked with running logistics for 1st Armoured Division during the Gulf War. He went on to serve as Commander, Logistic Support for 3rd Infantry Division in 1992.

Cross served his first of three tours in the Balkans, attached to the Implementation Force (IFOR), in 1995–1996. His second was in 1997, with the Stabilisation Force (SFOR), where he commanded 101 Logistic Brigade, and his third in 1999 with the Kosovo Force (KFOR). During his tour with KFOR, he was responsible for co-ordinating multinational troops and civilian agencies in establishing refugee camps in the aftermath of the Kosovo War. He was later appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his service with KFOR. Cross was promoted to major general (two-star rank in NATO terms) in 2000 and served as Director General, Defence Supply Chain until 2002, when he became involved in planning for the forthcoming invasion of Iraq. He was the most senior British officer involved in the planning and in the Coalition Provisional Authority.

Cross

A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two lines or bars perpendicular to each other, dividing one or two of the lines in half. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally; if they run obliquely, the design is technically termed a saltire, although the arms of a saltire need not meet at right angles.

The cross is one of the most ancient human symbols, and has been used by many religions, most notably Christianity. It may be seen as a division of the world into four elements (Chevalier, 1997) or cardinal points, or alternately as the union of the concepts of divinity, the vertical line, and the world, the horizontal line (Koch, 1955).

Etymology

The word cross comes ultimately from Latin crux, a Roman torture device used for crucifixion, via Old Irish cros. The word was introduced to English in the 10th century as the term for the instrument of the torturous execution of Jesus as described in the New Testament, gradually replacing the earlier word rood. Crux is possibly derived from Phoenician. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia cross does not come from crux but form the Latin curio, "to torment".

Matt Bird

Matt Bird is an Australian film director.

Biography

Matt Bird is a Sydney-based director who in February 2013 became the first filmmaker to be selected as a Tropfest finalist for 3 consecutive years, the world’s largest short film festival.

The three films were ‘Taser’ (2013) starring Firass Dirani, ‘Min Min’ (2012) and ‘A Desperate Deed’ (2011), which won Best Editing and Best Original Score.

Bird’s notoriety as a director began in 2000 when he wrote, directed and produced the indie feature 'Blue Neon' during his final year of film studies at the University of Technology, Sydney. Triple J radio film critic Peter Castaldi declared at the time: "Australian screens need a future and this is it!" Bird was then invited as one of eight award winning directors to make a film for POV 2002, from a script by celebrated writer Brendan Cowell. Bird's film 'The Doppelgangers' told the story of a woman haunted by horrific visions of her lover's double, and starred AFI Award Winner Pia Miranda.

Mike Oldfield

Michael Gordon "Mike" Oldfield (born 15 May 1953) is an English musician and composer. His work blends progressive rock with world, folk, classical, electronic, ambient, and new-age music. He is best known for his 1973 album Tubular Bells – which launched Virgin Records and became a hit after its opening was used as the theme for the film The Exorcist – and for his 1983 hit single "Moonlight Shadow". He is also known for his rendition of the Christmas piece "In Dulci Jubilo".

Oldfield has released more than 20 albums with the most recent being a rock album titled Man on the Rocks, released in 2014.

Biography

Early life

Mike Oldfield's parents are Raymond Oldfield, a general practitioner, and Maureen Liston, an Irish nurse. His sister Sally and brother Terry are also successful musicians and have appeared on several of Mike's albums. He also had a younger brother, David, who had Down's syndrome and died in infancy.

Oldfield was born in the Battle Hospital in Reading, Berkshire, and he attended St. Joseph's Convent School, Highlands Junior School, St. Edward's preparatory school, and Presentation College in Reading. When he was 13, he moved with his parents to Harold Wood in Essex and attended Hornchurch Grammar School, where, having already begun his career in music, he took just one GCE examination, in English.