1. 12 The obituary described Nureyev as 'a great dancer and a true artist'.

2. He had been praised by one giddy Paris reviewer as a dancer to make the great Rudolf Nureyev jealous.

3. From the time of Xenia Pushkin, Nureyev always had a following of older women who would do almost anything for him.

4. Nijinsky may have been the greatest Spectre de la Rose, Nureyev the greatest Corsair, but these two candles pale in the light of Jackson's blazing star.

5. It is like watching a video of Rudolf Nureyev being the black swan and then expecting to be able to twirl round the living room in a similar fashion yourself.