Glen McGuiness

choice for Tabler magazine. However,

When I relaunched Tabler, I wanted inspirational stories from inspirational individuals – whether they are Tablers or not - to be the core element around which we build the rest of the magazine. Glen McGuiness’s story is certainly one to inspire - growing up in one of Dublin’s less affluent districts, with little support from parents; coming out as gay, searching for a career that would allow his artistic talents to flourish - then most recently going on to win Glow Up Ireland. His is a story that is rooted in the community where he grew up and the family that have been there throughout. Before we start – a couple of quick notes… • The Liberties: the area of Dublin that almost all Tablers will know as the

home of Guinness. • Glow Up Ireland: The Irish version of the hit make up competition - think

Bake Off with lipstick rather than flour We start by discussing Glen’s background and local community: “To be honest its very simple, it was a story I tried to tell on Glow Up but was largely edited out. My father simply wasn’t around – to this day he knows my address and always has done but is just not there. My mother on the other hand was an addict who was unable to raise her own children. Looking back, I know now it was neglect and abuse. However, my grandmother saved my life, little-by-little, day-by-day she took over bringing me up. It went from visiting after school to sleep overs and then one day I realised I was never going back. Alongside Annie (grandmother) I had this wealth of other positive and supportive women, particularly my Aunty Ann, collectively they stepped in to fill the breach and raise me, my brother and sister.” “The Liberties, where I grew up, is the strangest place in the world. On the one hand it’s like a country town, full of people who all know each other and everyone’s business; on the other there is the rough atmosphere of gangs, drugs and homophobia. It’s changing dramatically through a combination of investment and new blood – it really is a strange melting pot of negative and positive.” You would think coming out as gay in

such a place would have been particularly tough for Glen. But he again points to Annie and Ann as his biggest supporters: “They never even questioned it. I remember Annie coming on Pride march with me. She was nearly seventy and using a walking stick – this tiny Liberties woman proud of me and my friends, taking pictures of all the drag queens – it was a brilliant time and I am just sorry she wasn’t around a few years later to see the gay marriage vote pass. Ann was there though – she came to everything and still does. She is the one person who knew I was going on Glow Up and was behind me all the way.” During our interview I told Glen about “Rooted in Community” and he said that he sees the positive sides of community everywhere – and it has been vital to his wellbeing: “I remember going into the last day of school in full drag make-up – it was prank day so should have been legitimate because I was still in uniform. However, I was sent home – my whole class rebelled until the teachers apologised and I came back. That community still exists today all throughout the Liberties. As this is for Tabler, we move on to talking about the men in his family. “As I said I don’t even think about my father and to be honest the family is mostly fairly loud women. The men though are strong and supportive in their own way – they slag me a bit but in a positive way that makes me know they are there for me when needed.” We chat a little about Table and the banter we all share, and it seems a fairly similar situation. When Glen talks about slagging it’s that kind of grief you can give and receive from your Table mates – but if anyone else tries it they will back you up and be there for you. Glen moves on to talk about his creative journey and the fact that an LGBT youth group got him interested in costumes, which in turn led to fashion college then university. Then, a book on special effects, make-up and prosthetics given to him by one of his many cousins inspired him to switch degree and focus on makeup. However, qualifying in Covid19 lockdowns with social distancing put everything on hold so he became a baker instead: “Bloody Covid!” Despite the frustration of not being able to work in professional make-up Glen continued to spend his spare time doing online makeup, sharing looks on Instagram, which is where he found out about Glow Up Ireland: “I just love competition TV – bake-off etc they are all on Netflix and I was frustrated not to be able to apply for Glow Up in the UK as I lived in Dublin. Then the show crossed the Irish Sea and there was a chance to get out of baking.” “The auditions were really tough,” Glen laments. “Application forms, timed videos of looks on myself and models, all the time talking through the process and about myself. To be honest I think it was the slightly dark humoured personal stuff I discussed with one of the models that caught their eye.” Glen feels it was his chameleon energy that set him apart from the other competitors. “We all had different core skills that we brought to the show and understandably some of the other competitors kept going back to what they knew and were good at. However, I tried something new every single time. It was a gamble but it paid off.”

To the viewer it appeared that Glen had a lot to say about each of his designs but the edit cut it out. “Yeah, I talked about a lot of stuff to camera, how each design was related to different struggles in my life – such as the moth theme in the first episode. Everyone loves a beautiful butterfly, but until Annie rescued me, I felt ugly and unloved like the moth. Or the show where I drew eyes all over my face as part of a theme focused on inner darkness – apparently I have my mothers eyes, which is why I disliked them. Now though, I see things differently and love and respect them because they are mine.” Filming finished on the 7 August but the winner wasn’t announced until 21

October. The whole family gathered to watch the final and Glen found himself hiding in the toilet during the ad breaks so no-one would ask him questions and spoil the surprise. “Celebrating the win with family and friends was far better than finding out when on set. At that point it was two finalists, two judges and a COVID secure film crew – hardly a big celebration. Seeing the expression on the faces of family and friends, seeing how proud they were of me validated so many things. It also felt like a chance to show them how much they meant to me and to thank them for so many years of support.” Glen’s is clearly a story of inspiration, of someone stepping out of their perceived comfort zone and actively choosing to be different. As Tablers there is a lot we can learn from this, particularly in terms of mental strength, particularly in terms of looking for support from those around us and particularly in terms of that community we are all ultimately rooted in. Glen is now working for a leading makeup firm, doing freelance work and film shoot work. His exact future is unclear but his advice to others including us Tablers seeking to emulate him when it comes to breaking moulds and being different is very clear. “Just do it, get on with it and the people that love and support you will follow you and be there for you. You find out very fast who matters when you try to be different, sure it will be culture shock for some but they will get over it. If not – meh – that’s their problem not yours.”

1. If you are balding, shave it off.

Your head isn’t that ugly so don’t fight it. (Dickie Holland has been all over this for years) 2. Beard oil is a genuine thing and worth investing in. All that shaving damages the skin and it will help. 3. Invest in a moisturiser containing

SPF. Look after your skin, it’s the only one you have and the sun kills it. 4. Colour correction creams are great and really useful if you get red cheeks, noses etc (perfect for post sleigh skin care). Photography credits: RTE and Ruth Medjber