Bailey’s cream
DAVID BAILEY
From the Kray Twins to Austin Powers, the influence of DAVID BAILEY is everywhere. Now Britain's most famous photographer is bringing his work to Scotland. WOrds: Helen Monaghan
HE WAS AND STILL IS BRITAIN'S BEST-KNOWN PHOTOGRAPHER. Four decades on, the East Ender turned media star who clinched a contract for Vogue in his early 205, shows no sign of slowing down. Tempted to ask him those immortal lines from the 705 Olympus camera adverts — ‘Who do you think you are, David Bailey?” - I think better of it and ask instead what he’s up to now.
‘I’ve just done a shoot for Tina Brown of Talk magazine,’ he says in his familiar Cockney tones. ‘It’s a whole issue, so it’s taken us about a month to do. In the last ten days we’ve been in Madrid, Paris, New York, Seattle. Los Angeles and now back in London. She's great, Tina; one of the great editors.‘
At the age of 63, Bailey is far from retiring. With a new book of photographs, Archive One, and an accompanying exhibition of early photographs from 1957—1969 opening at Edinburgh‘s Dean Gallery this month, he is still very active. But then again. he always has been. Not only a fashion and celebrity photographer (although he rarely takes fashion shots now). Bailey has directed films, including one about Andy Warhol, made over 500 TV commercials (as well as starring in some) and produced countless books. On a personal front, he lived a life most of us only read about in the tabloids. He was engaged to 60s model sensation Jean Shrimpton, married French actress Catherine Deneuve and was mates with Mick Jagger.
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