- Born
- Died
- Keith Wainwright was born in October 1944 in England. He is known for Sebastiane (1976), The Tempest (1979) and The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle (1980). He died in April 2024.
- In the 2011 New Year Honours he was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for contributions to the hairdressing industry.
- In 1965 he began working in London's West End for Leonard ladies salon where he was credited with starting one of the first men's hairdressers catering to the longer men's styles of the time and playing music to create a more youthful atmosphere. His clients at the time included Roy Wood, The Move, Cat Stevens, The Walker Brothers and Elton John.
- Was the first hairdresser to be credited on an album sleeve with Roxy Music's self-titled debut album.
- In 1969 he opened a salon in Knightsbridge called "Smile" with partners Leslie Russell and Paul Owen. During the next decade he worked with chemists and hair technicians to create "unnatural" hair colors. These were later popularized by the British "punk" movement. Keith became known as "Keith at Smile".
- In the 1980s he styled hair for television commercials such as Brylcreem and pop promos like Cliff Richard and Debbie Harry while continuing to work at Smile. In 1984, Smile moved to Chelsea, and was mentioned in the lyrics of the Pet Shop Boys' 2012 album Elysium, on the track "Requiem in Denim and Leopardskin.".
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