Pub regular Kirk Wyatt was praying his landlord had a steady hand after agreeing to have his hair shaved – with a meat cleaver.

Kirk, 28, of Church Street, Hoo, decided to have the chop for charity after his friend Paul Dumpleton, 35, was diagnosed with cancer.

Kirk and Paul, who is from Gravesend, have worked together in Strood for 10 years.

Kirk said: “Paul is about to begin chemotherapy and I decided that as long as he was going to lose his hair, then I was going to do it with him.

“Everyone knows how much I love my hair. I’m a bit of a tart. So they know it’s a big sacrifice for me. Paul thinks it’s a brilliant idea.”

Apprehensive

When Kirk told the landlord of his local watering hole his plans, the pub proprietor offered to cut Kirk’s hair with something a bit sharper than a pair of scissors.

Landlord of The Chequers, Bill Andrews, gave Kirk his cutting-edge make-over with help from landlady Annie Cuthbertson, at the pub in Church Street, Hoo.

Speaking before the event part-time DJ Kirk said: “I’m slightly apprehensive about Bill cutting it with a meat cleaver but the money I raise will be worth it. Within a day of deciding to do it, friends and family had pledged more than £300. All the money is going to Cancer Relief.”