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Glenis Daly

Aucklander Glenis Daly had the experience of working with David Bowie across two major projects - a film and a major rock tour.


Early On


In the early 70s, Glenis qualified as a hairdresser and in 1975, she joined South Pacific Television where she trained as a make up artist.

Whilst freelancing, Glenis worked with Larry Parr who became the NZ producer for Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence.

In early 1982, she gained the opportunity to work on the film.

Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence (1982)



At first, Glenis was a bit reluctant to take on the new job.

The film's main location (the South Pacific islands of Rarotonga) was not exactly local - and Glenis had children at school that she needed to organise.

 
Cast and crew of Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence. Picture supplied by Triona Daly



"It was an exciting 6 weeks of filming in Rarotonga. This was where I first met David. The actors and crew all socialised together with plenty of beach time."

 
In total, Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence required Glenis for a total of about 10-12 weeks.



David Bowie and Glenis Daly. Picture supplied by Triona Daly



"After final filming in Auckland, David asked if I would like to work with him again in the future, to which I said yes of course - expecting never to hear from him again"......
 
Serious Moonlight Tour (1983)

....."to my surprise David called from Switzerland at 3am December 20th 1982.
He asked if I would work with him on his up coming world tour.
I was absolutely thrilled to accept the offer.

I had a lot to organise at home now being a single Mum with two daughters, living on a lifestyle block with six horses, sheep, pets and an orchard all to be taken care of while I was away."

Glenis soon headed on to New York where she met the concert production company and the designer of the Metropolitan Opera who designed Bowie’s outfits.

David Bowie and Glenis Daly. Picture supplied by Triona Daly


"It was very much a gentleman look for him. He had two piece suits, cravats, ties. I think he had 7 or 8 different suits of various colours – mainly pastel colours.

David Bowie and Glenis Daly. Picture supplied by Triona Daly


On Tour

After joining David in Cannes for the premiere of Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence, the tour kicked off from Brussels.

"What a fantastic journey".

On tour, Glenis had an assistant who took care of the band.

This allowed her to exclusively take care of David - hair, make up and wardrobe.
David Bowie and Glenis Daly. Picture supplied by Triona Daly


"I’d always be side stage for every concert with a towel and drinks. Often he’d change a different outfit at half time.

I think we only lost one jacket on tour which was pretty good."

David Bowie and Glenis Daly. Picture supplied by Triona Daly


"It was a truly extraordinary time, one I will never forget.

David was amazing to work with - considerate, great sense of humour, appreciative and a lot of fun. Everyone loved him".



David Bowie and Glenis Daly. Picture supplied by Triona Daly



"I think the world never really saw David the comedian because he really did like to ham it up and have fun".



David Bowie and Glenis Daly. Picture supplied by Triona Daly


"There were 96 Serious Moonlight Concerts in Europe, USA, Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, the last three concerts were Bungle In The Jungle with a reduced crew in Singapore, Bangkok and Hong Kong.
The largest show was at Western Springs, Auckland (my home town) with numbers being recorded at somewhere between 85,000 and 90,000 people."
The Daly Family in America

"The largest festival was more than 300,000 attendees to the Us Festival in the San Bernardino Valley, California.
We traveled around Europe and USA in David's chartered Boeing 707.
My daughters, Triona and Nadine joined us in Texas, at David's invitation for a month as we traveled through several other States on tour."

David Bowie with Nadine Daly and Triona Daly. Picture supplied by Triona Daly


Glenis' daughter Triona - a member of Bowie Downunder - recalls:

"My sister and I were incredibly lucky to travel through the USA on tour.
I was 13 at the time.  We had no idea who he was before we got there. We grew up out of the city.

David took us personally with Joe his son to see Lincoln memorial and the Smithsonian Institute. David also hired out the Hershey’s Chocolate Theme Park for all the band and crew and us kids.

It was totally incredible"

Framed tickets of every concert. Sent by David’s production company in New York to Glenis. Photo provided by Triona Daly.

Beyond Bowie
 
Over the years, Glenis has worked freelance throughout New Zealand with international and local production companies. As for other favourite moments. 

"A highlight was working on the Billy T James Series for the duration of the production."
"Another memorable job was working with David Hasselhoff on his music video which was produced here in Auckland"



  Keeping in Touch

BDU asked Glenis if she'd kept in touch with people from the tour:

"I caught up with renowned rock photographer Denis O’Regan at his gallery in London a few years ago and met with legendary base guitarist Carmine Rojas when he was in Auckland for the Bowie Alumni Concert May 2019, which was a fantastic show.

I also see Gee Ling who starred in China Girl from time to time here in Auckland."



Glenis Daly. Picture supplied by Triona Daly



Finally, a huge thank you to Glenis and Triona for their amazing Bowie story. I was also able to ask Glenis about her favourite Bowie music:

"My all time favourite songs are 'Modern Love', 'Let's Dance' and 'China Girl'."