RIP Jos Brink

This is a very Dutch item. Last Friday, Jos Brink breathed his last. He was only 65 and succumbed to cancer. He was a lay preacher and a TV presenter. He was an actor and columnist. He was a producer of musicals and he was gay, married to his husband Frank Sanders. He was, I think it is fair to say, much loved by many Dutch folk. So far, over 20,000 people have left messages on the internet site for condolences. I don’t believe it is a stretch to say that he paved the way to acceptance of gays (and not simply mealy-mouthed tolerance) as just another intrinsic part of Dutch society.

 

Before his funeral on Thursday, he will lie, in state as it were, in the Amsterdam Carré Theatre. I can’t help but feel that he will have a terrific send-off on that day. He deserves nothing less.