Hair Secrets From Celebrity Hair Stylist Sam Mcknight | The Pool

I'M at night, hello, what's an absolute pleasure to meet you and thank you very much for inviting us into your studio into your inner sanctum of your hair wizardry. You are one of, if not the most legendary hairdresser of our time and you work with all the big names in fashion from Karl Lagerfeld for Fendi and Chanel Vivienne Westwood Paul Smith, all the big fashion photographers from Nick night to patch it to marchelli a Mario Testino and of course, you've done the hair of some most famous women in the world, from Madonna to Victoria Beckham, Cara, Delevingne, Jamie Campbell, Kate, Moss and, of course, Princess Diana. And now you have this exhibition at Somerset House sunset houses. Major winter exhibition hair buy some at night and it opens on the 2nd of November, and you have this brilliant coffee table book to go with it and and it celebrates your career in in hair, you of the 40 years of being at the absolute top of Hairdressing, but I wanted to start at the beginning, if I may and just ask: when was your big break, I suppose that came in the late 70s, when I worked in a salon called Molton Brown before Molton Brown was just hand wash, it was actually the sort Of the top salon in London it was a South Molton Street was part of the Brown's fashion Emporium and I worked there as a stylist and they happened to send lots of their stylist on shoots for Vogue. So I was introduced to Vogue through a photo shoot that I've been sent on from the seller. What was the fashion industry like then? Was it very different? What it is now was a very exciting. The fashion issue, then was it was very small. It was, it was really tiny and it was it was the shows were just there. Only industry showed there were trade shows and the public didn't know anything about them. I mean in fact I did a show in late 70s, I think 78 for the manuals, and I can't remember really, but I think I had about four or six assistants and now I think at the last Chanel show we had 30 assistants in a hundred models. So the whole thing has has exploded. He was the first celebrity or the first big name. I think probably the first big celebrity that I worked with was probably Brooke Shields at the beginning of the 80s. For us Vogue celebrities, weren't models like they are now it was, it was, models were sort of models, were models and actresses are actresses, and I mean the the worlds have melded into one now, but I think Brooke Shields was a model before she was an actress, But she was a huge celebrity. She was. She was a massive. It was a massive celebrity because Warhol had taken pictures of her and she'd been working with Avedon for years, and I did an American Vogue cover with avid on with her. So I guess that was would have been my first big star talking people you've worked with and in the book you have a whole chapter on Princess Diana and you did her hair for seven years. What was she like? Oh she was lovely. She was very nice. She was funny we had lots of laughs, she was she's, very beautiful. I know I was just very lucky to again, I'm being in the right place at the right time, doing a shoot for Vogue that I was introduced to her by Patrick de marsay and Hannah Harvey who worked at Vogue in 1990, and I cut her hair short. That day and we kind of got along together and - and I spent the next seven years on and off with her and um yeah, we had lots of fun and her hair was such a massive definition of her look. It was, you know, a huge part of it and you're responsible for that. That must be quite amazing. Well, looking back at it now I mean it, I mean, of course I knew at the time it was a great honor to be involved in at the beginning, but but it's only retrospect, you realize how historical it was cuz, because I was just there doing her Ham, we, you know, we did the job and left, and that was it. You know, but um and retrospect, it's you know it's it's it's a part of history. I guess - and it feels great to have been part of that, and is it to you that you watched brick side together. Well, she did love to watch Brookside and sometimes, if I was there doing a half or something on a Saturday night Brookside used to be on in the afternoon, we would we were dumb. We would get a good old session of Brookside in yeah and and another person that you've worked with closely and again. She'S got a sections book as Kate, Moss, yeah and you were sort of with her from the beginning. Have you got a favorite shoot that you did with her or a favorite? Look that she's had everything. Kate does is always she brings her huge personality to it and a huge talent, so every shoots completely different and there's so many in there and yet that's why Kate has a chapter of her own, because because there's so many great images we couldn't possibly choose you Know just one or two: how many shows do you do a year? I do sixteen shows a season plus guitar plus the mid-season shows so yeah. It'S quite a lot. Have there been any moments from the shows that stood out for you at all yeah one particularly memorable moments during show season was when Naomi fell off her massive platforms at a bit on a Vivienne Westwood. Show at that time did you did you realise that that was going to be a real moment in history? No, we did not. I remember Yasmin Lebon and I looking at the screen watching her keel over thinking, she's not going to get back up, but she just jumped up and smiles, and it became quite a defining moment of that you what's the biggest change you've seen in women's hair over The last 40 years, probably the biggest change in women's hair in the last 40 years, is the way that maybe in the 70s, there were probably two or three hairstyles - that woman hadn't, that was it, and women over 30 cut their hair short, and that was it. There were rules, but there weren't any rules anymore. The rules have all been broken and if it now that there isn't a defining hair moment - and maybe we're feeling more confident in our own hair yeah, but I shall never thought of it like that. But you're right. I think probably people have gained a confidence or their that they never had before. That'S quite amazing of it, you know and yeah you know, especially the texture as well. Yep frizz, yeah fresh, is fine. With this father raises fine. I was very interested in the book when they spoke about the natural hair and that effortless hair and that's something that you very much created. Do you feel like we're we're keeping coming back to that in the same way that no makeup makeup is yeah. I think I think that's that's, probably learned one of the answers to one of your questions before I think it's that confidence thing isn't it. I think I think now I cannot keep going back to hair products and tools, and you can actually just enhance what you have rather than fighting, and I think people are much more confident, they're, confident enough to to have their own hair and and not fight. It is there such a thing as effortless hair. There is such a thing as effortless. Now you look like you've got effortless hair. I did quite a lot of effort in there. You go better me. So let's know what, if that's not what it's about it's about? What it looks like not about the 3 hours you spent doing, are there any hallmarks of or what makes a great haircut? What makes a great haircut something that looks good on you and something that looks effortless and something that doesn't look like you've tried too hard, which is harder to get than what what it sounded the right person to do and do it. I think you have to develop a relationship with your hairdresser. That'S what it's all about! Really mm-hm, exactly hair can utterly transform someone yeah without a doubt, it changes it. You know changes according to your moves, your diets, how your body is, you know it. I mean how the atmosphere is. It can bring many different things, but I think it's about learning. I mean there's so much info out there. It'S about learning how to do different things with it. I really want to ask you about the final page in your book. Okay, which is completely gorgeous - and it's you in your week and and I mean every this - it's a humorous - it's a brilliant we've also got it on your cup and we're surrounded by all these wicks here. What is it about wigs that you love? Well, look at that I mean what's not to love. No, I mean if you leave a hairdresser in a dressing room with a couple of hours, while the makeup is being done, but the bag of weeks you'll definitely get someone trying the more that's for sure, and it's usually the hairdresser I've taken Polaroids of myself in Various wigs and things since the 70s and I've got a nice little collection of those and this the iPhone being a camera and then Instagram happening just kind of was a natural progression and we've always got a bag of wigs and a white wall, and it just. I just started posting them and it just became a thing. Have you got a favorite? Look, no, you choose from your favorite child and why now why 40 years? Why not 30 years or 25 years, because I might not be here in 50 years. The book is not actually the book of the exhibition it. The book is much more full than the exhibition. There'S, obviously not enough room and exhibition to put me there. We'Ve also got wigs in the exhibition. We'Ve got different different aspects, a bit more 3d in the exhibition, so it just kind of happened at the same time and it felt like the right thing to do. I mean when I'm offered, when you're offered a major exhibition by summer's house. You just don't say no, whether it's 20 years or 40 years it and final question and would have you ever. Would you ever have a plan B, Japan Bay Bay? All I think it's a bit late for Plan B yeah, you