Beaches, BAFTAs and Bad Dreams?

All members of the band Viola Beach died
 on the 13th of February, 2016

Van falling from bridge in the movie Inception

"I know that when you fall asleep at night 
You're dreaming dreaming of a better life 
While I'm dreaming dreams of sleeping by your side 
I guess I never really got you right..." 
Like a Fool
Viola Beach

"Viola Beach were an emerging British indie rock group, formed in Warrington, Cheshire, in 2013. 
The band's final lineup consisted of Kris Leonard (guitar and vocals), River Reeves (guitar), Tomas Lowe (bass), and Jack Dakin (drums). 
All four, along with their manager Craig Tarry, died in a car crash in Södertälje, Sweden, on 13 February 2016."
If you are wondering what happened to the post that was here yesterday, I had to scrap it because I realized I miscalculated the time difference between New Zealand and Sweden.
I thought it was 22 hours when in fact it is 12, so my Valentine's Day connections between the Viola Beach accident and the Christchurch earthquake were wrong, but apart from that, there is still some eerie connections that weekend, which I will try to relate in this new re-written post.

Apart from Leonardo DiCaprio starring in a movie called The Beach, take a look at the clip below from Leo's movie Inception and keep an ear out for the word "beach" for a few more goosebumps.

Leo took out "Best Actor" at the 69th BAFTAs on Valentine's Day, which was the day after Viola Beach's van plummeted off the bridge in Sweden.
Leo dedicated his BAFTA win to his mother whose birthday it just happened to be on the night he won the award.
"I would not be standing here if it weren't for this person," DeCaprio said. "Mom, happy birthday! I love you very much."
Is 69 the new 42?

11th of November,
or 11/11?

Oddly enough, Leo was born on the 11th of November, or 11/11.
11:11 when seen on a clock is often referred to a "wake up call" among new age and Christian types who see this number often.

Ironic that their playlist included Cher's hit 'Do You Believe in Love' and they died on the day before Valentine's Day.

"At 69 years old, many critics believe Cher is too old to be flaunting her body. 
But she proves them wrong by stripping down completely naked on the current issue of LOVE Magazine!"

69?
Love?

Cliffs crumbling to the beach in Christchurch
 on Valentine's Day, 2016

Cliffs/buildings crumbling on
the beach in the movie Inception

"Cliffs have collapsed in New Zealand during an earthquake in the city of Christchurch on the South Island.
No serious damage or fatalities were reported in the Valentine's Day quake that struck at 13:13 local time (00.13 GMT).
Beaches to the east of Christchurch were busy with swimmers and surfers when rocks began to fall into the sea."
New Zealand cliffs collapse in Christchurch earthquake

Final scene of Inception

13? 
What year did Viola Beach form? 
2013.
And what was the date they died? 
The 13th. 
And what time on Valentine's Day did the Christchurch earthquake hit? 
13:13.
Hmm. 

The Next Day (Explicit)

Marion Cotillard is in Bowie's music clip for The Next Day. 
Leo's wife in Inception is Marion Cotillard from 'La Vie en Rose' (Non, je ne regrette rien, is also the song used as a "kick" to bring the dreamer's out of the dream state). 

Bowie plays Nikola Tesla in Nolan's The Prestige.

Oddly enough, the man credited with finding New Zealand, Captain James Cook, was murdered on a island beach on February 14th.
"The English navigator Captain James Cook sighted New Zealand on 6 October 1769"

Cook Statue, unveiling in
Christchurch, New Zealand

There are even stories that Cook's heart was cut up and eaten by the chiefs of the natives that killed him on Valentine's Day 1779.

The Secret of 'The Revenant'

"On 14 February, the day the news was announced, there was a round of applause for the band at the Premier League match between Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur. 
Manager Craig Tarry was a Manchester City supporter."
And while I happen to be a Tottenham Hotspur supporter, I think a more heartwarming result for both sets of fans on the day probably would have been a draw, but that wasn't to be and Tottenham moved to within two points of Premier League leaders Leicester as (Christ)ian Eriksen struck a late winner.

Kris Leonard (guitar and vocals), River Reeves (guitar),
 Tomas Lowe (bass), and Jack Dakin (drums)

On a personally weird note, I had sent away in the mail for a CD rack which is modeled after the English telephone booths the members of Viola Beach are sitting on top of in the photo above.

I put all my spare CDs in the rack on Friday night, and while I had never even heard of the band Viola Beach then, on Valentine's Day I saw the photo of the band sitting on top of the phone boxes, which seemed eerie in hindsight of the passing of a band I knew nothing about until the same weekend I put some of my favourite CDs into this rack.

Life can be a strange and sometimes tragic ride, that's for sure. 
My condolences to friends and family of Viola Beach for what turned out to be a sad Valentine's Day weekend indeed, but I'm sure they live on somewhere else.