The Tragic Story of Terry Burns – David Bowie's Half-Brother Lost to Schizophrenia

Croydon, 1982. David Bowie arrived at a psychiatric hospital carrying records, a stereo and cigarettes for his older brother Terry. Bowie was famous around the world. Terry had spent much of the previous decade in hospital. Terry was the person who introduced David to modern jazz, Beat writers and Buddhism. This film follows their complicated family story, Terry’s struggle with schizophrenia, and the lasting influence he had on Bowie’s music. This is the untold story of Terry Burns, David Bowie’s older maternal half-brother. Chapters 0:00 Intro 0:35 Nine years 2:34 The family shifts 4:21 The outside things 8:01 The first signs 10:31 After John 12:01 Cane Hill 14:51 What treatment meant 17:09 All the Madmen 20:31 The hospital visit 23:02 The long years 24:48 Two songs 27:52 The open door The narration is based on published Bowie biographies, Bowie’s documented interviews and archive material, family accounts, and contemporary newspaper reporting. Where sources disagree, the narration says so. Archival images are in the public domain or used for commentary and historical documentation. Photo credits (Wikimedia Commons): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Da... (CC BY-SA 2.0 de, Elmar J. Lordemann (de:User:Jo Atmon)); https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Da... (CC BY-SA 2.0, iluvrhinestones from Seattle, Oceania); https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ga... (CC BY-SA 2.0, Shaun Nolan); https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gr... (CC BY-SA 3.0, Nabokov. Required citation is: "Photo by Tom Oates, 2009"); https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sm... (CC BY-SA 2.0, turtlemom4bacon from Orlando, FL, USA); https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Th... (CC BY 3.0, Ines Zgonc (User:Amazone7)) #TerryBurns #DavidBowie #ForgottenFamilyArchive