On the morning of Sunday, March 1st 2003, Julian Michaels, a close personal friend of mine as well as a popular and much liked member and visitor to this website, sadly died of a long term illness. Below are the comments, memories and condolences posted on the NTSC-uk forum by its members, many of whom had known Julian both online and on personal terms. On behalf of everyone here at NTSC-uk, we all pass our condolences onto Julian's family and friends.

If you would like to add to this tribute page please email me at webmaster@ntsc-uk and I will be more than happy to do so for you.

Mark

Many of you will have known him from back on the Wireplay forums or will have spoken to him here, whilst others will have met him at one of our meets, and I am sure you will join me in passing on your condolences to his family and friends whom have stood by him right from the start, through good times and bad.

With respect, I dont want to discuss the factors that contributed to his passing at this time, however I thought it be important that I should let you know what has happened.

Mark

Sorry, bit stuck for words.

Ive known Julian online now for many years, and eventually had the pleasure of getting to know him in real life due to work taking me to London removing the distance of where I live.

He was a top bloke, and a really nice guy. Its absolutely tragic that this has happened to Julian. I will definately miss his chats, and not seeing him again when Im in London.

My condolences go to Julian's family, and my thoughts are with him.

Mark

My condolences, I shall miss Alpha's essay like posts.

Regards
Marty

Never met the guy but he was always friendly and informative on here, a sad day indeed.

RIP mate.

Julian was a great guy and many of us knew him personally. He was very warm and generous and this is a real tragedy.

Thank you for passing on the news Marcus. I know it can't have been easy.

There's not much else you can say at a time like this.

Gutted.

My condolences & love to Alpha's family & friends - I only knew him from this board & he seemed like a good guy.

I didn't know alpha half as well as many people here but he across as an extremly knowledgable and enthusiastic poster here and on wireplay. A friendly chap the times we've chatted in IRC too.

Condolences to his family and friends.

However I do know the respect and appreciation in which he was held by a number of regular posters (and owners) of this Board.

Whilst my thoughts naturally go out to Alpha's family, they also go out to yourself Marcus - from what I've read in the past, you were possibly the closest to him on these Boards.

It kinda puts things into perspective doesn't it..

R.I.P Alpha

Take care Julian, see you in the afterlife.

.....

...

:(

I am truly most deeply sorry Marcus, Sidez and all who were close to him.

I wish there was something I could do to help :/

I never met Julian in the flesh but on the forums and IRC he was always warm and friendly.
He was a true lover of videogames and a bit of a nightowl too.
We'd sit in irc in the wee hours chatting about random stuff and his epic posts are the stuff of legend.
He was among a few online buddies that I really felt I must meet someday.

My sincere condolences to his family and close friends.
Such a great guy will be sorely missed and won't be forgotten.

Steve

I remember when I was read one of Alpha's posts on the old Wireplay forms. Never before had I read such a long, and informative post as his. It is such a shame that we'll never see one of those again.

My condolences go out to his family, friends and all those who knew him.

RIP Alpha.

A great person and a tragic loss.

Shocked...

was only thinking of Julian this morning when i logged onto ICQ and received a birthday reminder for him

my condolences go out to Julian's family and close friends

I used to talk with him for hours in IRC PM, and I really thought he was beginning to get back on his feet again. To here this news is just horrible.

I didn't know Julian personally but enjoyed hearing his views on the forum. He was certainly a character and will be sorely missed.

My condolences go out to his family and friends.

My condolences are with his family and friends

rest in peace alpha

If there's anything I can do in the slightest, perhaps I could make a suggestion - maybe this thread should be pinned in the forum as a memorial?

I didn't really know him and in retrospect I wish I had spoken with him more. But it wasn't hard to see the impact he had on the NTSC forums. Julian always made well written, informed posts and it was easy to see that he was a true gamer and loved this pasttime.

My condolences to his family, his friends and those on these forums who held him in high regard.

It goes without saying he'll be sorely missed.

I'm so sorry to hear of alpha passing away. I didn't know him much on the forum, but the posts he made were always detailed and informative, and he seemed like a very thoughtful person.

I know how some of you on here were very close to him, so I'm very sorry to hear of your loss.

I'm struggling to find the right words, but please know that my thoughts are with Alpha's friends and family.

A devastating loss.

I am sure he will be forever remembered fondly, and his spirit will remain in his family and friends.

You are gone but not forgotten
we will always remember you
for while we may have disagreed
your words were always true

You are gone but not forgotten
in our thoughts you will remain
our time was oh so precious
we all still feel the pain

Though no longer with us
friends congregate for you
You are gone but not forgotten
you'll help us make it through.

A top top top bloke who will be sadly missed

My condolences to his family, friends and those that knew him personally on this forum.

I have had quite a few conversations with Alpha and even bought a few bits and bobs from him. Diamond bloke and will be missed around here.

I was hoping to meet him one day.

This is a sad day indeed.

Its nice to see him remembered in so many different ways and reasons. Ill remember him as being the kind, thoughtful and supportive friend he was to me over the 6 or so years Ive known him, ever since we got chatting after I was amazed to see StreetFighter Zero running in my local Game where he worked at the time, and we became good friends ever since.

He influenced me in many ways and we had a good relationship, he was always there for me if I wanted someone to talk to, as I was to him, which is something that I feel is very hard to find, and not only have I lost a close friend Ive also lost a soul mate which is very hard to take, indeed this whole thing is still just sinking in for me.

I have many good memories of Julian, and will miss him dearly, and its so cruel that a good person like him lose his life at such a young age.

Thanks again for your support.

It's a tragic loss, and my condolences go to his family and friends. I too am lost for words as hearing about things like these happening to people of our own age is startling and surreal to say the least.

my strong condolences go to his friends and family.

julian, i hope to meet you in our next lives, and damn you if not!

uli

duesseldorf, 02.02.03

Everyone else has said it too, but I also enjoyed trawling through his (sometimes vast) posts, they were always very well informed and amusingly written. I especially enjoyed reading his colossal thread dissing MGS2. I was often impressed by his entusiasm, honesty and knowlege. A true gent of the forum who never posted rash and hostile comments when people disagreed with him. A lot of us could learn by his example.

Peace
CHAD

My thoughts are with his friends and family.

Shit.

My condolences.

Although I didn't know him personally, his loss is still as tragic, and my heart goes out to all his family and friends.

Pete

I knew Julian for about 3 years online and met him once along with some of the other faces around here. He was a decent bloke on/offline and will be remembered for his helpful nature and highly informative posts.

Condolences to his friends and family.

RIP Julian.

Julian was one of my first true online friends (along with Mark and Marcus), a truly interesting person with such a passion for the hobby. Gaming and movies were pretty much his life and profession and it showed. I know people say this sort of thing is bullshit but I don't care, he truly defined hardcore and wasn't afraid to flaunt (hey, he was like that) and share his knowledge. I have known him for what must be 4 or 5 years now and although I had only met him once and talked on the phone about a dozen times, I still feel so fucking saddened by his passing away. He has inspired me in ways he probably is unaware of or simply showed through both his mistakes and the things he did right, how to lead life.

It's no secret that he had been unwell for a long time, I just wish illness hadn't taken his life.

It's strange typing this out, I wish i'd not be doing this and he'd be with us today.

Hope you have RRV and SFZ3 in the afterlife, as I know you only deserve and accept the best.

Take care Julian.

In that spirit, I'd like to share my condolences with his family and friends, and hope they are soon to come into their measure of peace.

"I know not how to say farewell,
When farewell is the word
That stays alone for me to say
Or will be heard.
But I cannot speak out that word
Or ever let my loved one go:
How can I bear it that these rooms
Are empty so?"

With love
Stu

Hes certainly been in my thoughts these last few days. Hopefully he is reading this as I write, so im putting my thoughts into permanent form for julian

I didnt know his as well as a lot of people, but ive had quite a few lengthy chats with him over the last couple of months. In fact he was very supportive of some personal issues that I had been dealing with, even though mine were comparatively insignificant. One thing i will say is that he was clearly a genuine, warm guy. I hope he is watching us now, and I hope wherever he is, he is happy.

Thinking of you
Christian

From what I've seen on this forum he certainly was one very unique guy. Never afraid to share his knowledge or views.

Just makes me wish I'd taken the time to say 'Hi' in my many visits to IRC

My thoughts are with all who knew him.

Extremely sad day indeed.

Alpha, I'm sorry to see you leave us, and I hope that where you are now gives you peace and hope.

We shall all miss you.

I think it might be some small consolation to his family that so many have had such a positive experience of Julians presence in their online life.

My condolences to family and friends,

Mark (S.)

May he rest in peace

Tommy

He was a real character on these forums, I remember well the threads about his import collection, including some photos of himself standing resolutely infront of shelf after shelf of top class gaming goodness. He was an all round top bloke and I for one will really miss him on these pages.

My sincere condolences to his family and friends.

My condolences to his family, friends and all that new him on this board.

I only know him from his posts on here but he certainly knew his games and his passion was clear from the effort he put into his posts.

Condolences to his family and friends.

We had a great conversation about video games, and a good game of sf3 Julian was really likeable, honest and friendly.

I can't believe he has gone.

My condolences to Julian's friends and family.

However; thinking back on it, it was, for a flame, moderately civilised, intelligent, well informed and most importantly non-patronising (none of that 'come back when you know a bit more sonny' you sometimes get), and between considering my reply and Alpha's response, I knew that I was doomed to spend the rest of my life wasting far too much time on discussion forum.

So, cheers for that man

Seriously, fucking bad news and I'm as gutted as the rest.

What I do know is that a large group of intelligent caring people I respect are moved by the emotion of this situation and can convey their thoughts in an articulate and thought provoking manner acustom to the person that has sadly passed away and been taken from us.

I suggest we all try to grow and become a better person and to learn to accept everyone here both old and new with the same grace and compassion that you have said he conveyed with his words.

Lets make NTSCuk even better than it is today. Lets work together for what Alpha believed in. If he's watching over us all I'm sure he would be happy to know that NTSCuk will burn and burn like a beacon of light to wayward ships on the ocean.

Why you ask? Well the Soul will never die.

For Alpha.

He will be missed.

I never knew him personally but always took note of his posts on here.

He was a unique and fantastic person.

My condolences to his family and friends.

Although I'd never met him personally, we'd exchanged many e-mails and PMs (mainly for him buying stuff from me) but in these messages, there was always room for both of us to have a bit of a chat. He had told me about his illness in a little detail and I had genuinely been thinking of him throughout the times of our exchanges. When Adrien told me I felt so so bad, not only for Julian himself, but for his family and how they must have felt/must be feeling.

This tragic tragic event also reminds me and has continually reminded me over the past few days of the complete fragility of human life. We must cherish and value the time we have on this earth, and especially cherish those around us who we dearly love. Our time is so limited and we have no idea of actually how long we and others have left. That is not to say that we should live life scared and paranoid of of when the end might come, but we should remember to really value not only our time but really value and appreciate those who you care for.

May I offer my deepest condolences to Julians family and friends. My thoughts are with you all. Your Julian was such a lovely bloke and truly a beautiful person- genuine and generous and selfless.

My condolences to his family and friends.

My condolences to his family and friends

Peace to Alpha and see you on the otherside....

I never had the pleasure of meeting him or speaking to him. But i read many posts.He came across as a sound guy.My thoughts are with his family and his close friends

See you when we get there m8!

112

James looked up to Julian as almost a big brother figure and when we had the opportunity to get together, he would spend hours showing us the latest games. He always made a huge effort regardless of his illness and never disappointed him.

A week on from his funeral I still find myself questioning his loss and I'm really pleased to find that people have taken the time to write their comments, memories and condolences on the Internet.

I take from these messages a real sense of positiveness as they demonstrate Julian's spirit through his interaction with so many people, on a subject that in essence was his way of life . I hope you are able to leave them on line so that his friends and acquaintances are able to come back and read the comments and in a way, share the grief.

I'm sure that the loss of Julian will leave a void in friendships that will be hard to fill. However we are better people for knowing him and having him, all but to briefly in our life's.

Simon

What comes through so strongly is the way he touched so many peoples lives, by his enthusiasm, by his ability to make others believe more in themselves, by his kindness and his incredible strength of character..

In his true heart he was bounteous in the joy he gave, loving and affectionate. If anyone was in trouble or unfairly treated he would be their champion.

It is a source of comfort to read your messages over and over again.

Be unconditional in the love you give to others, therein you will find your strength.

The candle has a light. That light, one little candle that shines from your heart can light so many other candles, without itself being diminished. We are like lights in the world, and our life becomes a blessing for everyone.

God Bless you All.

Linda