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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteMichael White, the former Thompson Twins member, died in Perth, Western Australia, in February 2018 at the age of 58. His wife, Lisa, announced the death on Facebook, and tributes followed from people who had known him through his later work teaching and running writing courses. This article covers who he was, what he did after the band, and what the reported tributes say about him.
Which Michael White this is
The name is shared by several people, including a New Orleans jazz musician and a theatre producer. The Michael White discussed here is the British musician who was a member of the 1980s pop band Thompson Twins. PerthNow’s report on his death, written by Liam Croy and published on 13 February 2018, identifies him through the band and distinguishes him from other people with the same name.
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His career, from the band to the classroom
White’s public profile began with the pop band Thompson Twins. Later he moved into teaching, writing and screenwriting, a range of work that PerthNow’s report presents as one continuous second career rather than a break from music.
Thompson Twins and “Hold Me Now”
PerthNow describes the band’s 1983 hit “Hold Me Now” as the best-known point of reference for his musical career. The report uses the band to identify him, which is the clearest way to tell him apart from other Michael Whites.
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Science lecturer
The report says White became a science lecturer. It also says he taught at the University of Western Australia (UWA), a detail that appears in one of the tributes quoted below. The report does not give dates or subjects for that teaching.
Author
PerthNow describes him as a bestselling author of 43 books. That figure is the newspaper’s description, not an independently checked bibliography, and the report does not list individual titles. Readers looking for a specific book should check a library or publisher catalogue directly.
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Screenwriter
The report calls him a screenwriter for the then-upcoming film The Gateway. PerthNow’s report does not say what role he played or when the film was released, so those details are not established by this article.
“The Book Guru” in Perth
White ran writing courses in Perth under the name “The Book Guru.” The name appears in both the PerthNow report and one of the tributes, and it is the identity his local students and colleagues knew him by.
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Rank #3
His death and family
White lived in Perth with his wife, Lisa, and their four children, according to PerthNow. The report says Lisa announced his death on Facebook and goes on to describe the family’s grief. The article does not quote her words directly, so readers should rely on the report for the family’s response rather than on any direct statement.
The dates attached to his life come from two sources with different standing. PerthNow reports his age as 58. IMDb’s biographical page, which is user-contributed material, gives his birth date as 16 February 1959 and his death date as 6 February 2018. Those dates are consistent with the reported age, since his birthday fell after his death that year. The death date is taken from IMDb and is not stated in the PerthNow report.
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What people said after his death
PerthNow reported a tribute from Cottesloe Barbie, who had worked with White on local writing courses and who wrote to her 16,000 followers. The report attributes the following sentences to her, and the wording below is as reported:
“Michael was an exceptionally talented and versatile individual but he also exemplified an even rarer gift: humility,” Cottesloe Barbie said to her 16,000 followers.
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“Michael was passionate about everything he did but the greatest passion of his life was his family.”
“Known as ‘The Book Guru’, Michael was just and fair, extremely funny and wonderful company.”
“He taught both at UWA and most recently, with me. He was a wonderful friend and it was a privilege to know him.”
These quotations are reproduced as printed in PerthNow’s report. They have not been checked against a recording or an original post, and they are not from an interview.
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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchThemes in the tributes
- Humility: the tribute describes humility as a rarer quality than his talent and versatility.
- Family: family is named as the centre of his life, above his other passions.
- Humour and fairness: he is described as fair, very funny and good company.
- Friendship and teaching: the tribute describes working with him as a teacher and friend.
What the sources establish, and what they do not
- Established by PerthNow’s report of 13 February 2018: his membership of Thompson Twins, the “Hold Me Now” reference, his later work as a science lecturer, author and screenwriter, his Perth writing courses under “The Book Guru,” his age of 58, his family, and the tributes quoted above.
- Reported by IMDb: his birth date of 16 February 1959 and death date of 6 February 2018. IMDb’s page is user-contributed, so these dates are treated here as corroboration.
- Not established here: a complete list of his books, the film’s release details, the exact subjects he taught, or any direct statement from his family beyond the report’s account.
Most of what is known about his later life comes from a single newspaper report published shortly after his death. Readers who need more detail should look for further coverage from Perth outlets and official records.
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