Southsea barber gives customer haircut as clock hits midnight on July 4
A BARBER gave one of the first hair cuts in the country for more than three months as the clock hit midnight on July 4 – the day hairdressers, pubs and restaurants were allowed to open.
Neil Hood, from Edwards for Men in Southsea, gave lucky client Russell Keith a hair cut last night at 12am to mark the very first moment that hairdressers are allowed to reopen.
He said: ‘It has been 103 days since I cut someone’s hair so was good to get back to it.
‘It was a bit of fun to do it at midnight. When we heard the news that Boris said we could open on July 4 and so I put a post my Facebook page saying who wants one at midnight and a lot of people said they were willing.
‘Russell is an old friend so he was my willing participant. It was a bit strange being in Southsea at that hour because it is usually so busy but of course it was dead.
‘It was also a good chance to try all the PPE out while cutting someone’s hair.’
Neil and the rest of the team started a virtual calendar of appointments when the date of July 4 was first put forward.
He said: ‘When it was first hinted that July 4 would be the date we could reopen, we started booking appointments provisionally and as soon as it was confirmed the phones just lit up.
‘I think people are desperate to get their hair done because it is a chance to get out and also if you look good then you feel good which improves your mental health.’
All hairdressers have to ensure social distancing guidelines are followed and face masks and visors are worn.
Neil said: ‘We are getting as back to normal as we can at the moment. We have gone from being a walk in salon to appointments only for safety and we all have three sets of combs and scissors so we can rotate and sterilise between clients to make it as safe as possible.
‘I think many businesses from a financial point of view will be grateful to finally open as well.’