I haven't yet wrested the trophy from BrianH's pedantic hands, Ardross - I'm pretty sure he's still at least 100 pts ahead, with Maurice and me in joint second place. Of course, if I Googled half as much as B, I'd probably be challenging - however, I lack the naked ambition to succeed at all costs and will always be resigned to watching him scoot over the horizon. (Brian - we know you're looking in from your cabin on the SS Luxuriance, don't pretend you're not!) 
Warbler, to respond to you on lost contributions: plenty of those around in all of the Arts, if you're talking of addictions. However, a major robber of further offerings was probably penury, with its attendant malnutrition, vulnerability to disease, and early death. Few who pushed the boundaries ever saw a living out of doing so: with their works ridiculed by reactionaries, refused by potential patrons, and often used as barter to keep them alive, it's surprising that any evolution in the written word or the painted picture took place! Far safer to have remained doing 'useful' work like being a cobbler or safely middle-class, with a steady income. So many heroes in so many guises!
Warbler, to respond to you on lost contributions: plenty of those around in all of the Arts, if you're talking of addictions. However, a major robber of further offerings was probably penury, with its attendant malnutrition, vulnerability to disease, and early death. Few who pushed the boundaries ever saw a living out of doing so: with their works ridiculed by reactionaries, refused by potential patrons, and often used as barter to keep them alive, it's surprising that any evolution in the written word or the painted picture took place! Far safer to have remained doing 'useful' work like being a cobbler or safely middle-class, with a steady income. So many heroes in so many guises!
