If you're like me and like to watch stuff whilst cutting out, pinning and sewing, here's some appropriate Bowie suggestions for you. And of course, you don't have to be sewing to enjoy them.
As this post title suggests, I'll be back with other things to watch, movies and videos, plus if you check back each day, I'll have a 'Daily Bit of Bowie', starting tomorrow...a short video a day. On Tuesday, I've got a Bowie playlist for you to sewalong to too. (two, ok that's too many twos).
But my following suggestions are longer documentaries for you to enjoy and possibly gain inspiration from. I'm sure I can't be the only person who enjoys a good documentary.
Here's a fab one, originally shown on BBC4 and narrated by Jarvis Cocker with some great background information about the creation of Ziggy Stardust and the effect he had on David Bowie and the world:
And here's the link if you want to watch it in your Youtube app: David Bowie - the story of Ziggy Stardust (documentary)
If you really want to get immersed in Bowie's Ziggy Stardust to Aladdin Sane years and his touring of the USA...here's the highly acclaimed Alan Yentob documentary for BBC Omnibus: Cracked Actor. It's an hour long, but a seriously good watch. Originally screened in 1974 on the BBC, but I saw it first on the Beeb in the 90s....and without a doubt it influenced me when I became a burlesque performer (I often channelled my inner Bowie on stage). There's some fab footage backstage of Bowie preparing for concerts and touring.
If you can't cope with an hour long documentary, here's my favourite clip from it about why he came to America and why he became a rock star....and driving around roads that look suspiciously like Arizona or Nevada (who'd have thought I end up here too). My favourite bits are his 'waaa-doops' to Carole King's (You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman, how a fly in his milk is like coming to America and his opinion on a wax museum in the desert.....
There's also the time when Alan Yentob revisited him to make a new documentary for the BBC: Changes - Bowie at 50.
Here's another fab documentary telling Bowie's story and showcasing over 30 years in showbusiness: David Bowie - Sound and Vision.
I've been trying to find a show the BBC showed last Christmas which was an hour long compilation of his performances through the years at the Beeb, but it seems EMI (I think) have taken it down from all sites....
...so instead I'll leave you with the performance that probably made his career in 1972, Starman on Top of the Pops. If you live outside the UK, Top of the Pops was THE music show in the UK, the equivalent to American Bandstand or Soul Train in the States and performing on it could make or break performers.
Watch how David Bowie as Ziggy Stardust uses acting skills many other singers of the time didn't possess. He knows EXACTLY where the cameras are and he uses them like no other British performer before him. I reckon the moment he became a star and won over British teens is when he looks in to the camera, sings "picked on you" and points directly at you and me through the screen. Star quality:
If you want to join in with the Bowie Sew Along, everything you need to know and loads of extra resources can be found here - Bowie Sew Along index.
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