In 1984 Olivia Barclay devised the first ever traditional astrology course in the United Kingdom, the Qualifying Horary Practitioner (QHP). It was Olivia’s edition of William Lilly’s Christian Astrology Modestly Treated of in Three Books (London, 1659), which facilitated the new edition of Christian Astrology by Regulus Publishing in 1984. The astrological community world-wide owes much to Olivia Barclay. Students who were disillusioned with modern astrological practice, enrolled with Olivia Barclay and her school of ‘traditional’ astrology. Barbara Dunn explains that following the award of her Diploma from the Faculty of Astrological Studies, ‘I still felt that I could not make clear and unambiguous predictions for clients. However, my studies with Olivia put an end to the confusion. Over the next few years, I learned a great deal about traditional astrological doctrine and prediction’.
Robert Hand has talked about the QHP founder Olivia Barclay on his website.Olivia Barclay was one of the ones (along with Robert Zoller) who started the entire movement of revived interest in traditional astrology. The study of horary astrology in particular would not be what it is today were it not for the QHP course. Olivia Barclay bequeathed the QHP course to Barbara Dunn in 2001. We highly recommend the course and Barbara’s new book Horary Astrology Re-Examined: The Possibility or Impossibility of the Matter Propounded (Wessex, 2009) for all serious students of astrology.A Letter from Olivia to her Students (1998)Hundreds of people have tried the course, but it is difficult and those who expected it to be easy have dropped out. Of those who successfully completed it, some have produced periodicals, some have devised their own horary courses, some have more or less adapted mine both in the UK and America. But this is the original course and I have more experience than the others. Running the course is my motivation and it is my repayment to Mr Lilly for the information he has given us. My concern is to pass on that information and I do so by being quite a hard taskmaster to my students, insisting on corrections being done until they thoroughly understand each point. This makes some students angry. It also makes much more work for the tutors. But which way is preferable? An annoying tutor who teaches you exactly, or a charming one who can’t quite be bothered? You should think of that before you sign on.Ken Gillman, Editor of ConsiderationsOlivia Barclay, the author of Horary Astrology Rediscovered, is the person solely responsible for the current widespread interest in horary matters and also for the reawakened concern throughout the astrological world with traditional and classical astrology.Nicholas CampionIt is perhaps too early to assess Olivia’s long-term importance, but she has single-handedly transformed the way we think about astrology. Her impact so far is really quite monumental.Robert HandOlivia Barclay was one of the great ladies of modern astrology …she led not only her students but also the entire astrological community into an examination of its roots and its past, not out of a misguided sense of antiquarianism, but out of the realisation that the astrology of the future can be built only on a firm knowledge and understanding of its past…. The future of astrology will owe much to Olivia Barclay.