Alannah Currie
From crafting 80s synth-pop anthems with Thompson Twins to a provocative second act creating art from breast milk and trash.
Born 1957 (age 69)·New Zealand musician·Birthday: September 20·Baby Boomers
Biography
Alannah Currie's creative journey is a story of radical reinvention. She first captured the world's attention in the early 1980s as one-third of Thompson Twins, the chart-topping synth-pop trio whose hits like 'Hold Me Now' and 'Doctor! Doctor!' defined an era. With her distinctive bleached hair, vibrant stage clothes, and percussion work, she was an unmistakable part of the band's visual and sonic identity. After the Twins disbanded, Currie didn't fade from view; she dramatically pivoted. Moving to London and later the West Country, she transformed into a visual artist and activist with a fiercely DIY, feminist ethos. Her work is unflinchingly tactile and political, often utilizing discarded materials—plastic waste, vintage porn magazines—or deeply personal substances like her own breast milk to create sculptures and installations that confront consumerism, environmental damage, and the female body. This second act reveals an artist continually shedding skins, moving from pop spectacle to intimate, challenging material conversations.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Alannah was born in 1957, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Alannah Was Born
The biggest hits of 1957
#1 Movie
The Bridge on the River Kwai
Best Picture
The Bridge on the River Kwai
#1 TV Show
Gunsmoke
Alannah's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1957Born
Sputnik launches the Space Age
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $10,550Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"All Shook Up" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: The Bridge on the River Kwai
1962Started school
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1970Became a teenager
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1973Could drive
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1975Could vote
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1978Turned 21
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1987Turned 30
Black Monday stock market crash
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $72,400Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Walk Like an Egyptian" — The BanglesBest Picture: The Last Emperor
1997Turned 40
Princess Diana dies in Paris car crash; Harry Potter published
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $104,100Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Candle in the Wind 1997" — Elton JohnBest Picture: Titanic
2007Turned 50
iPhone released; Great Recession begins
Gas: $2.80/galHome: $172,600Min wage: $5.85/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Irreplaceable" — BeyonceBest Picture: No Country for Old Men
2017Turned 60
#MeToo movement; solar eclipse crosses the US
Gas: $2.42/galHome: $195,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Shape of You" — Ed SheeranBest Picture: The Shape of Water
2026Age 69 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Co-wrote and performed on multiple international top 10 hits as a member of Thompson Twins, including 'Hold Me Now' and 'Lay Your Hands on Me'.
- Founded the craftivist group 'The Sisters of Invention,' creating wearable art and sculptures from recycled materials to promote environmental awareness.
- Created a series of sculptures and vessels using her own breast milk mixed with resin, exploring themes of motherhood and bodily autonomy.
- Her work has been exhibited in galleries and institutions including the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
Did You Know?
She taught herself to play percussion after joining Thompson Twins, initially using a makeshift kit made from tin cans and metal objects.
Currie is a dedicated vegan and environmentalist, themes that are central to her later artistic work and lifestyle.
She was in a long-term relationship with bandmate Tom Bailey, with whom she has two children, before the couple amicably separated.
Her artist name is often listed as Alannah Currie of 'The Sisters of Invention'.
“I'm not a pop star anymore; I'm an artist making a racket.”
