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Born 30th September 1969 in Armthrope, near Doncaster, from an early age Gary always had an artistic flair. After completing his O-Levels he pursued this passion by studying Art & Graphic Design, graduating with a Higher National Diploma. Sadly, the demand for newly qualified Graphic Designers was all but non-existent in South Yorkshire and so his search for work proved fruitless.
As a result, Gary knew that these opportunities would exist, but perhaps more further afield in the more cosmopolitan cities and most likely London.
Moving to ‘down south’ was going to be a costly gamble and so Gary needed funds to realise his ambitions and decided to take a job locally to boost his finances.
Being from a mining community, the most convenient option for Gary was to take a job at the local mine. Although in the dying years of the Armthorpe Colliery they were still taking on new recruits and so Gary spent 6 months working the coal face in dark and often dangerous conditions.
As soon as Gary felt he had enough funds, he packed up his belongings and headed for the bright lights of London.
On arriving in the capital he began his search for work. Despite contacting many agencies and applying for numerous jobs, his lack of design experience hindered his transition into immediate employment.
The first job he took however did make good use of his artistic skills and he was taken on to paint the faces of the mannequins in various shop windows.
From the experience gained from working on mannequins Gary built on these skills, and moving away from paint to traditional make-up, he began teaching himself the skills which now form the foundations of his career today.
At the same time he began to train as a hairdresser. This gave Gary an additional string to his bow and as a multi-skilled artist it gave him a greater opportunity of work and success.
Gary began to build a strong portfolio of work and it wasn’t long before he gained his first celebrity client and the ‘model of the moment’. As a result her photos and Gary’s work gained a lot of attention and very soon other celebrities wanted to take advantage of Gary’s make-up magic.
Since then, Gary has accumulated a vast collection of celebrity clients and his impressive CV of advertising campaigns and editorial features, creating an impressive portfolio.
Dedicated to providing an outstanding service to his clients, Gary is a true ambassador for the beauty industry; this has also included acting as a spokesperson for Estee Lauder.
Gary Cockerill’s expertise, versatility and down to earth temperament have established him as the UK’s leading make-up talent.
On TV Gary featured in the first series of very popular 'Ten Years Younger' and previously had a regular slot on Channel 4’s 'Big Breakfast', and also as the grooming coach on ITV’s ‘This Morning’. Gary also participated in TV series 'Make me a Supermodel' with Rachel Hunter.
In December 2005 Gary married his long-term partner and TV presenter Phill Turner in a civil ceremony at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel. The lavish and celebrity packed event was covered by OK! Magazine and the edition has become one of OK!’s biggest selling issues of 2006.
