INTERVIEW SPECIAL
MENTAL HEALTH ON THE ROAD: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU EXPERIENCE TRAUMA AND WHAT HELP IS AVAILABLE?
Luke Edwards, Production Designer and Production Manager for Gary Numan’s latest UK tour, talks to TPi Editor Kel Murray about dealing with an unpredictable, and sudden tragedy.
“It’s important to have people around that you can rely on, especially when something really tough and upsetting happens on tour,” the words of a man rawly dealing with the after affects of an accident. “Our tour bus unfortunately struck a pedestrian and killed them,” he said with an evident, fresh emotion. “We were on the bus at the time, travelling to the next venue in America. As a Production Manager, it was one of the toughest things I’ve ever had to deal with.” Unfortunately, being first aid trained, Edwards’ first reaction was to jump off the bus and inspect the accident. The scene - which proved instantly fatal - was one of devastation. The deceased was a very elderly man. The bus wasn’t speeding, it was just horrifically bad timing which resulted in the loss of a life. “Luckily, I was the only person on the tour who witnessed it. After the shock began to die down, it became clear that this was going to be one of the toughest things I’d ever personally experienced too.” Weeks later, during the UK leg of the tour, Edwards informed TPi that talking about it is the only way forward. “It’s one of those things; yes, I’m still struggling with it and I’m still dealing with it, but I’m also really glad that all the crew and all the band were told to get back on the bus, as they didn’t need to see what the aftermath was. “After a couple of days, during some downtime in the States, the band and crew acknowledged that the best thing for us to do was to be on tour and be with each other. I’d have felt horrible if we had all just gone home and separated with nobody to talk to who had gone through the same emotions. It was almost like trying to get back to a state of consciousness, collectively. I remember we were at the scene for nine hours, but it felt like 20 minutes to me because I was so busy trying to keep these people
Photo: The Fifth Estate
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