The inquiry officially began mostly behind closed doors in July 09 (perfectly timed to the start of the Uranus Retrograde). However, in late June 2009, mere days before Uranus turned Retrograde, the Chairman of the inquiry Sir John Chilcot, had urged that the inquiry be made as public as possible. He got his way, after an embarrasing U-turn (Retrograde!) by UK PM Gordon Brown, but it was not until late November 09, as Uranus was about to turn Direct that the doors opened on the public part of the inquiry!