TOTALLY TAILER

TOTALLY TAILOR

Firstly, let me introduce myself, my name is James McGuigan, I am from North Belfast. My drag character is called Tailor Maid.

I’m here to let you know a bit about James growing up and how I discovered Tailor and the art form of drag.

As a child in the 90s in North Belfast, I was into absolutely anything that I shouldn’t have been. I was always in trouble for something mostly because I had too much energy and not much of an outlet to focus that energy on. I climbed trees, played on the streets til after dark, even played the game ‘BELFAST’ where my friends and I would ring the bells on the doors of unsuspecting neighbours and run fast away so they would open their doors to no one. There is a lot more stories of similar stature, but I don’t want to give away all the secrets. But you get the idea.

I am quite nostalgic about that time in my life as It doesn’t really seem to exist anymore, I don’t see a lot children playing on the streets where I grew up, and it makes me slightly sad. The world has changed in many ways.

As a child I was always attracted to anything feminine, I loved shiny jewellery, anything colourful and long hair, I remember asking friends of my mum could I brush their hair for them and loving how silky and soft it was. I managed to convince my granny to buy me my very own My Little Pony from Woolworths in town when I was about seven, whilst my brother was treated to an action man toy. The reason I wanted it was because of the hair on the mane and tail, I loved that toy. That year Santa brought me a few more My Little Ponies. I was all Bizz! This sort of treatment was standard in our household. My differences were encouraged, and I was supported.

My absolute favourite time of the year was Halloween, I loved dressing up!! Some of my earliest memories are sitting at my mum’s mahogany vanity table in her bedroom and having my makeup done as a vampire by my mum. Each year I was usually a vampire as back in the day there wasn’t many options at Halloween for boys. I was fine with this option, because I got to try on my mum’s Chanel lipsticks and wear her eyeshadows. I loved playing with my mum’s makeup at Halloween and then dressing up in the finest black bag couture outfit and hitting the streets for a night of Trick or Treating with a carved-out turnip with a lit tea candle inside. I thought I was a superstar, and you couldn’t tell me any different.

I remember dancing around my living room one night to the theme tune of the Crystal Maze, I was doing cartwheels, before I even knew what they were, jumping off sofas etc. My mum promptly enrolled me to start at a gymnastics club in North Belfast at Ballysillan Leisure centre. I must have been about eight or nine. The club focused on Sports Acrobatics which involved Floor exercises with various partners, set to instrumental music. So basically, dance combined with gymnastics. I went twice a week on a Saturday and Tuesday, and quickly was identified to have a natural talent in the sport. I ended up on the competition squad within a year or so.

Doing gymnastics really helped give me something to focus my energy and attention on. It really helped, and I found out I was kind of good at it. Over the years, my focus on gymnastics grew, in my teens/ late teens I was at gymnastics 4 nights a week and most weekends there was competitions or training camps etc. It was my home, where I felt safe, understood and to be honest I loved the attention of being able to do complicated moves, and I loved competing at competitions in arenas where the focus would be on what you are presenting!! They were my early performance stages.

I competed regionally, Nationally, and even twice internationally, in Switzerland and Germany. My biggest achievements in gymnastics were All Ireland, Ulster, and Northern Irish titles that I won many years in a row and winning the National British Championships 4 years consecutively which with the Boys 4. This hadn’t been done by a Sports Acrobatic team form Northern Ireland EVER! Never mind 4 years in a row. I am really proud of this achievement and still bang on about it to this day, much to the dismay of my family and friends who have heard all the stories before.

The late 90s and early noughties, were a pivotal time for me, the Spice Girls, Steps, B*Witched rocked my ear drums and Buffy and Charmed slayed my world and you couldn’t tell me any different. I really connected with strong females, doing their thing. I wanted to be them or performing along aside them. The number of times I envisioned myself in a Buffy episode slaying vamps as a member of the Scooby gang is both disturbing and fantastical, and every single concert I went to I wanted to be on stage with my favourite bands, dancing with them.

I just loved the idea of performing and was set in my mind that this would be my career choice.

I was about 17 when I really focused on my love for makeup, reflecting on it, it perfectly fitted with who I was and what I loved.

I became interested in Drag after going to the Kremlin for the first time “underage” might I add. I snuck in and sat at the front bar, and watched the people in the bar, all having their conversations and drinks without a care in the world, then without warning, there she was a 7ft tall Glamazon, with tit’s up to her chin, beautiful makeup and a gorgeous mane of blonde hair…. Ladies and gentlemen, I just discovered Baroness Titti von Tramp.

I was transfixed, I thought WOW she is so beautiful, I was inspired. I knew she wasn’t a biological woman, I was curious, I wanted to know HOW THIS WAS POSSIBLE?!

The first person to put me in drag was Paddy mc Gurgan, It was shortly before I went to University, I must have been 19. I Met Paddy on the Belfast scene, he was and is to this day “THAT” Makeup Artist. We became friends and one night he asked could he paint my face, and I couldn’t wait to say YES. We got Chinese food, he painted my face and put a black wig on me and we done a mini photoshoot in his kitchen. It was everything to me!

My journey in university is a story for another time, but I did study Dance and Counselling Skills in Chester. I graduated with Hons and then moved home once I graduated. Whilst I was in England, I started my makeup career in

When I came home, I didn’t know what to do, I lived in England for 3 years and felt a bit lost. I heard there was a drag competition in Mynt (modern day Luxe) where they were looking for a new act to be added to their entertainments line up. The competition was called MANI (Miss Alternative Northern Ireland). I knew at that moment that this was what I wanted to do. But I didn’t have a drag name. I was stumped. One day I overheard someone talk about an outfit they had that was Tailor Made and I thought “that’s it”! Tailor maid was born. I loved the play on words and the first name Tailor.

I pulled together some looks and a performance piece for the competition. Primark and charity shops were scoured to pull everything together. This was before Drag was popular, before Drag Race. On the day of the competition, I had Paddy mc Gurgan do my makeup and I even had a guest performance from Miss Trudy Scrumptious in my performance.

I ended up winning the competition knocking off 12 other entries and being crowned Miss MANI 2006. I was officially a Drag Queen.

I was given a cash prize, a holiday and got given my very own night in MYNT that I could design myself to entertain the punters.

My night was based around Desperate Housewives, and was called Tailored Housewives, it was a campy, fun evening, filled with various housewife tasks from ‘napkin folding’ to ‘what’s in your mouth’ all blindfolded. It was such a success that I was given extra nights hosting karaoke and bingo to a monthly cabaret extravaganza called PMT where I was joined by Titti Von Tramp and Paris Hilltown. It was so much fun…. For us.

Back then, I didn’t realise that people would have such strong opinions about what I was doing with my life. I was looked down on, called names, shouted at in the street. I let it affect me. It made me feel ashamed of doing drag. So, I quit, and moved to London and started back doing makeup in MAC.

I focused on striving to achieve in a career that was more acceptable at the time and would make more money. I was slightly scared by my experiences in trying to carve a career in drag.

But as I climbed the ranks in MAC I realised that it was taking me further away from makeup artistry and more towards targets and developing others to achieve sales. I let this happen, but I needed money to live, and London was expensive.

Over the years I worked for Mac and Bobbi Brown in London I ended up not doing drag, in years and also I ended up not doing that much makeup either. I was unhappy and wasn’t following any of my passions or dreams. I followed a corporate path and found myself disconnected to anything that resembled myself.

In 2017 I left my corporate role for Bobbi Brown and moved back to Belfast, I was burnt out to be honest. LOST. Unhappy.

I was depressed to be honest, and it took me a while to reconnect with myself. I started playing with makeup again and rediscovered my passion for the art of makeup.

I started working for Bperfect in 2019, in Education and Sales, I thought I would be happier working closer to my family and in a smaller brand. Little did I know how big the brand would get so quickly. In Jan 2020 I was encouraged to bring Tailor back by BPerfect Brendan for a hosting gig, to host the BPerfect Stand for Drag Con in London. I was very hesitant, and The JOY I experienced I cannot even describe in words. I felt ALIVE and very emotional about bringing Tailor back. I also felt guilty for not being truthful to myself for such a long time.

The experience was AMAZING.

I quickly planned a big comeback performance for Tailor for March 2020 but miss corona virus came along and put a stop to all of that.

Throughout 2020 I continued to practice and bring Tailor back slowly, building my wardrobe, practising my makeup. I was eager to see how Tailor would evolve to look like after over a decade of not being around.

I finally had the opportunity to perform at Belfast Pride 2021 in August, I performed one number for Union Street at their Street party, and I am very happy to say that I have been booked solidly ever since. I have been working closely with DFIU Events in Belfast and I have performed numerous gigs in Union Street, for BPerfect, hosted nights in Cargo by Vertigo and have even performed with Denali Foxx one of the stars of the American version RuPauls Drag Race Season 13.

My drag career is back on track and set for BIG THINGS. I am not stopping this time, and I don’t give a f**k about what anyone thinks. One of my biggest learns in life not to care what people think about me. I made a vow to myself to always stay true from here on and that is exactly what I am doing.

I think with life these days it’s hard to decide on a career that makes you truly happy, fulfilled and with a real sense of achievement. The problem is there too many options to choose from and we are exposed to so many options with social media etc. I am blessed to have had the experiences and opportunities in my life that have led me back to my dream of performing and entertaining and I’m glad that I’ve had an opportunity to share my story with you.

I am currently in talks regarding being represented by management. I have numerous gigs booked between now and February and I can honestly say I am the most content in myself than I have been in years.

In closing I want to say that as a child I never really realised what the word wisdom meant, I mean, I heard my parents and relatives mention that wisdom comes with age. But to me, as a “different” child with a creative imagination, all I could picture was witches and wizards in a Disney movie. That’s what wisdom was to me. Something magical that didn’t really make sense.

But as an adult only now in my 37th year on this planet I realise that wisdom it is the ability to see situations from an angel of experience and the ability to choose the way forward. I’m glad I’ve been alive long enough to have the wisdom to choose my path and know now that the only way forward is to listen to my heart and have confidence that I am doing what I am meant to be doing in life. Regardless of anyone else’s opinions. We get one short life to live and experience everything we can. Feed your passions, do what you love, be true to yourself.

Love

Xoxo Tailor

You can find Tailor Maid on Instagram @totally.tailor Bookings on Instagram or via email jamesmcguigan@me.com or call/message 07540533943

YOU!