A close shave, but all for a good cause

It took 14 months for friends and colleagues Graham Haugh, aged 30, and Adrian Carrier, 29, to grow their impressive beards.

But the hard work was lay to waste in a matter of minutes when they were completely shaved off this week.

The Kingswinford pair decided to re-style their appearance to raise money for Prostate Cancer UK and have so far collected more than £500.

And Graham admitted they only started growing beards when charitable fundraising turned into intense competition.

"I had been doing 'Movember' for the past few years and then the year before last Adrian decided to go one step further and to start growing a beard," he explained.

"When it got to the end of the month I ended up joining in. Before we knew it it had turned into a bit of a 'beard-off''.

"That then got a bit out of control. A year later and we were left with pretty substantial beards."

The tradesmen, who have been friends for around 10 years, decided to raise money for Prostate Cancer UK after Graham's father-in-law, Michael Silk, passed away from the disease in September 2013. Michael's funeral was the last time Graham had shaved before Wednesday.

The plumber admits his new look has taken a bit of getting used to.

He said: "It is quite weird really. I find myself looking in the mirror and I don't know who the person is.

"One of the strategist things is the perception of it all. When I go to grab my chin it suddenly feels like it is miles away.

"And I am definitely feeling the cold more. I actually didn't realise it had got this cold."

Graham also admits the shave at Chapter One Barbers in Pedmore, Stourbridge, has gone down well with his wife, Meriam.

He added: "I didn't want to take it off but my wife was threatening divorce. I think it was getting in the way.

"She doesn't like me to be clean-shaven but equally she didn't like it to the extent it got. I think somewhere in between is probably her preferred length."