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Is there some way I could have a virtual phone number for my trip that offers free / cheap forwarding to my local number (updating this at the start of each leg wouldn't be a problem), or a better Global SIM?
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but don't want the hassle of keep changing my number and letting people know.
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Virtual number schemes exist and would solve the second quotes issues. I have no experience or expertise with them so I will let others supply info for them.
If you truly have free inbound SMS with your current phone you might tell people to only use that number for SMSes and then you can respond with the cheaper SIM. Most global SIM cards have rather high SMS send charges.
However, 'a better Global SIM' is something I might better be able to comment on. You are going to spend some time looking at various global SIMs: check their rates for various countries.
Perhaps, I can suggest two.
Since you are in the UK Truphone has an interesting SIM card with 'local rates' for UK, US and Austrailia [The Austrailian rates show on the web site and they briefly had Aust. phone numbers also, but backed off that a day after first showing it]. You will also be able to keep this card since it has a UK number and rates for future use. The 'local rates' for USA and Aust have a monthly fee that you can pay whenever you want to use it for that--perhaps never after this trip and when you first use the card it has one month of the local rate free. Truphones rates for Singapore and NZ are not low. How much do you talk? The 'local' SMS send rates are good.
The second card I suggest might be hard to get in the UK [I have a message to the ebay selller I just sent.] The seller
ekitmobileusa on eBay sells
SIMple Calling Plus Service Canada and USA SIM card - 9c/m in US + 29c/m in Canada Check the rates for your countries. The SMS rate is 25cents [for international in the US] and 69cents in the other countries.
Shop around. Check the many rates of the various SIMs. Ask questions here.