SUPERFANSNuman clearly does not take his fans,
including wife Gemma, for granted.
“I’m not too keen on talking about my
fanbase as dedicated, or loyal,” he says.
“It gives the impression that they stay with
you no matter what, good albums or bad.
I know painfully well that, for the vast
majority of them, that isn’t true.
“My career was all but dead and
buried in the early 90s. I had hardly any
fans left, in fact. The larger part of the
fanbase is more discerning. If they don’t
like something then, for the most part, they
don’t buy it. It’s that fact which makes my
current success all the more satisfying.
“Having said that, there has always
been that small hardcore of fans that have
bought everything, come to every show,
even when I wasn’t at my best. That small
group has sometimes been all that stood
between me and disaster.”
Dr Duffett recognises these relationships
as mutually benefi cial. He says: “From
Elvis to BTS, stars, fans and critics have
all been connected; they have continually
formed a constellation in which each part
is energised by reacting to the other.”
WHEN GARY MET GEMMA
“I met her many times after gigs,” explains Numan. “She would come to the stage
door after the shows, get something signed and then go home. I knew her name
but that was all. The fi rst time I met her properly, actually had a long conversation,
was in late 1991. She hadn’t been to many gigs on that tour and when she came to
ask for her autograph I mentioned that, and we started to talk. Her mother was
terminally ill and she had been staying at the hospital with her. A few months later
I heard that, sadly, her mother had died. I called her up and invited her to come
with me on a promo trip somewhere and that was pretty much it. Gemma has
made a huge impression on me. She really is quite unique. I have met thousands
of people and yet I’ve never met anyone like her. We’ve been together 27 years and
I still miss her when she goes to the shops.”Gary Numan
with wife
Gemma, whom
he married in- A fan from
childhood, she
fi rst met her
future husband,
albeit fl eetingly,
when she was
just 11 years old