Deborah Houlding

Houlding (ca. 2010)

Houlding's natal chart (Placidus)

Biography

Deborah Houlding was born on 14th May 1962, at 8:30 a.m. GMT, in Mansfield/Nottinghamshire, England.

She is a British astrologer, principal of the STA School of Traditional Horary Astrology. She was editor of "The Traditional Astrologer," a subscription based magazine from 1993, publisher of rare and out-of-print Astrological texts, and graphic designer.

Houlding is a consultant and writer, specializing in horary and traditional astrology. She has made a few TV appearances and has written for the popular media.
As a graphic designer, she is frequently commissioned to create web pages for others.

Deborah Houlding

Astrology

Houlding has a background of mediumship. She began studying astrology in 1982 with the Faculty of Astrological Studies, and later with the Qualifying Horary Diploma Course. She qualified as a professional astrologer in 1989 and has worked as a consultant astrologer since, mainly in horary and predictive techniques. She also offers correspondence courses, lectures, and seminars.

With a long-term interest in the history and development of astrology and its symbolism, she founded Ascella Publications in 1992 to make rare and out-of-print astrological texts available to students. The list now extends to over 100 titles specializing in the history and tradition of astrology. Texts range from reprints of works dating from the 3rd century BC to original, contemporary titles.

Houlding has been presented with the Nitens Award from Faculty of Astrological Studies for 'Best calculation paper submitted in the Faculty Certificate Examination' in 1988 and a Diploma from the Qualifying Horary Practitioner Course (QHP) in 1999. She was honored by the P.A.I. of America for 'outstanding activities on behalf of furthering the goals of astrology in 1993. This award was received for consistently well-written editorials in her magazine.

She has published a wide variety of articles in other journals such as The AA Journal, The Horary Practitioner, Astrology Quarterly of the A.L.L. (Astrological Lodge of London), The Southern Astrologer, Mercurio 3 (Spain), Astralis (France), The FAA Journal (Australia) and The AA Medical Newsletter. She has written about the development of the zodiac as well as the cycles of Venus.

During the 1990s she spoke regularly at the annual conference of the British Astrological Association, most recently offering a master class on Traditional astrology at the 1997 event at Cirencester.

Her psychic demonstrations have frequently been given at Stansted Hall, the renowned Arthur Finley Spiritualist College at Stansted, UK. In March 1998, she gave intensive horary courses at Tasmania, Auckland and Melbourne with further courses in October 1998 in Perth, Adelaide and Brisbane. In the UK, a residential Beginner's Week was held at Castleton, Derbyshire, during late July 1997.

She wrote her important book The Houses: Temples of the Sky (Ascella, 1996) and created the Skyscript website.

Houlding's book

Houlding's comment on the BBC's reaction.

Weblinks

• Homepage Skyscript
• Interview with Houlding (13min25, 2013)
• Audio: Taurus, the Bull (Houlding herself speaking; 14min26))
• Understanding Planetary Dignity and Debility (part 1) (Houlding, ca. 2000)
• Letters to the BBC (Houlding, updated 2011)
• Ophiuchus puts his foot in it, but it's Cox who sticks the Boot in (Houlding, 2011)
• The Zodiac And Why There Are 12 Signs, Not 13 (Houlding, 2015)
• New Dates for Sun Signs? - Not in Astrology! (Houlding, 2015)
• House Division in Hellenistic Astrology (Chris Brennan, Traditional Astrology Radio 2011; 1hr24min, 48 MB)
• The Sign, the Whole Sign, and Nothing But the Sign … Really? (Deborah Houlding; vimeo.com, ca. 2022)

According to the Co-Star Astrology App (and many other internet reports): “The Whole Sign house system is the oldest form of house division, and remained the preferred method of determining houses for about a thousand years after its inception.” Is this really so? How did a ‘system’ which had no name or recognition in any well-known historical accounts of the various methods of house division, spread from zero to hero in only 30 years?

It all started with Project Hindsight...

• The Debate About Ancient Systems of House Division (54th episode of Brennan's podcast, together with Deborah Houlding; 2015, 2h16)
• Deborah Houlding and Whole Sign House Denialism (6h43; 2023)

Chris Brennan discusses and gives a commentary on a recent lecture by Deborah Houlding denying the historical existence of the whole sign house system