Now all that remains is for me to grow this Mo out…

… Well that idea didn’t last long!

Within about an hour of me posting my ‘Finale’ piece, I received a tweet from a producer on BBC Radio Gloucestershire asking me to contact them. I gave them a call and they asked if I’d be interested in appearing on the Breakfast show this morning and getting the Mo shaved off along with a few other willing participants.

If you’ve been reading my Movember journey, then you’ll know that raising awareness is a big part of Movember to me, so obviously I said yes! Luckily I was on a late shift today so able to make an appearance.

It was great to go on Mark Cummings’ show and have a quick chat about why I was raising money and how I’d done this month. Hopefully a lot of people heard and will be encouraged to take part/donate next year, or at least check themselves more regularly!

Movember may just be 1 month a year, but cancer or mental health issues can happen at any time, so please people check yourselves and talk to someone. You’re not alone.

Visit my Mo-Space and take a look back through my Movember 2017 journey:

• Why I take part
• The Beginning
• Day 6
• Day 11
• Day 18
• Day 25
• The Finale

We are finally here: Day 30 of Movember, the final day of the month. It feels like more than 30 days since I shaved the beard off and began to grow the Mo, but all good things must come to an end.

Thank you to everybody who has donated and supported me during the month, I would probably take part anyway as this is a cause that means a lot to me, but the reaction of the people around me makes it much more bearable.

The biggest disappointment for me this year has been that Movember does not seem as widespread as in some previous years. In sports circles, rugby continues to be a big visual contributor, with many players sporting questionable facial hair during club games and the Autumn Internationals this month. Though I haven’ seen much of the cricket, I have also noticed a lot of advertising for Movember around the ground during the first Ashes Test. However, what really disappoints me is the apparent lack of buy-in from football, especially the top flight. Football is one of the most visible sports worldwide and the Premier League reaches audiences everywhere, just think how much money could be raised if players in the top leagues began to take part in the numbers that rugby players do!

It may be the last day, but there is still time to go to my Mo-Space and donate. Help me to change the face of men’s health!

Now all that remains is for me to grow this Mo out…

My Movember 2017 journey:

• Why I take part
• The Beginning
• Day 6
• Day 11
• Day 18
• Day 25

Less than a week to go know. It feels like November is going fast, but I also feel like I’ve had the Mo for years!

It’s been great having the support at work and it really makes taking part in Movember more enjoyable. This year I’ve had a Mo-Bro in Mike who can actually grow facial hair – no offence Alex – so it has been nice not being the only one with questionable face-fuzz. As well as this the support from one of our managers, Kate, has been great, as she has helped get the word out around the business rather than just in our office, while another of our managers, Alan, continues to find new people or things to compare me to – WWF’s Legion of Doom being the latest!

But as much as Movember is a great laugh, there is a serious side to this. Please take a moment to visit my Mo-Space and donate whatever you can afford. As Tesco say, every little helps!

Together, we can help change the face of men’s health!

My Movember 2017 journey:

• Why I take part
• The Beginning
• Day 6
• Day 11
• Day 18

Hi guys, so Day 6 has some exciting news: the Mo is now shaped! I got it all sorted last night and now I am locked in for the rest of the month.

It may not be the easiest to see on camera yet, but give it a few more days and it will be pretty visible. For those who want an idea of what it will look like, the second image was the last time I did style this back in 2011. My plan is to shave every couple of days to ensure that it is as visible as possible.

I really don’t like the clean shaven look, especially now that I have nothing on top either, so at the end of the month I will be growing this out into a beard rather than shaving it off, so not only will I be looking ridiculous for November, but also a decent chunk of December too! And for those of you who don’t know, I don’t drive so rely on public transport.

Keep coming back for updates on the Mo-gression!

 

 

 

 

Please donate to my Movember page and help me to change the face of men’s health.

Why I do Movember

My Movember 2017 journey:

• The Beginning

Hey guys, something a bit different from the usual today in honour of Movember. Movember is a charity event that is close to my heart and I have been taking part in it for about 7 years now (the header picture on this page is from the Pistol Shrimps’ Movember social the first year that I took part). For more details on what Movember is and why it is so important to me take a look at my overview page, as this post is going to be more of a Mo-gression update.

In terms of fundraising, 2016 was by far my most successful year due to the help I got from colleagues at work. Not only did they really hep to spread the word, a couple of my colleagues also took part alongside me. Granted one of the lads had very minimal growth (if I’m being kind) and the other 2 lads only had their Mos for a couple of days, but it was great to have the extra support in the office.

This year I have a colleague going the whole distance with me and even though it’s early days, it looks like we’re going to have 2 cracking Mos in the office this month! I’ve always been able to grow quite decent facial hair but this year is a new experience for me. It’s not much of an exaggeration to say the only place I can’t grow hair well is the top of my head, so in recent months I have decided to ditch the heavily receding hairline and take the razor to the scalp. I’ve also had a permanent beard for the last couple of years, so the only times I have been clean shaven in the last 2 years have been due to Movember. People at work were shocked by my appearance on Day 1 when I walked in bald on both the top and bottom of my head! In just 3 days I’ve been told like Phil Mitchell, the Moon, a large baby and a few other NSFW things.

So, the all important Mo-gression picture:Obviously as this is a Day 1 photo there’s not much to look at here (other than my extra chins) but my plan is to put up a couple of update posts each week in order to give regular Mo-gression updates.

 

If you want to donate, please go to my Movember fundraising page. Any donations will be greatly appreciated.

Together we can help to change the face of men’s health.