Sussex man grows hair for a year for Cancer Research

Damien Coonan from Selsey has had a shaved head since 1995.

But last year the 36-year-old decided to grow his locks to raise money for Cancer Research UK, as his father-in-law Ken Nicholas was being treated for non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a cancer that originates in the lymphatic system.

Damien said: “My father-in-law Ken had quite a battle with cancer for most of 2017, and although he is still with us he’s confined to a wheelchair and he’s only 54.

“Before he was diagnosed, if I’m honest, I didn’t know anything about cancer. It was hard for the whole family to deal with.

“My wife Carli’s grandad passed away from cancer too, so in the last three years, we feel it has engulfed us.”

In October last year, after Damien and Carli got married, he announced on their honeymoon that he planned to grow his hair for a whole year to fundraise.

He said: “I’ve always had abnormally curly, out-of-control hair.

"Some people shave their hair off to raise money but I couldn’t do that, so I thought I’d go the other way and grow it for a year.”

Damien set up a fundraising page and his wife Carli, a hairdresser at Creations Hair Salon in Chichester, began posting photos of his increasingly bizarre barnet on Instagram.

He took inspiration from curly-haired celebrities like Will Ferrell and Jonah Hill, and tried out all sorts of weird and wonderful looks.

Damien said: “Of course through lockdown no one could have their hair cut, but even then mine was wild.

"Carli would do a wash and set, or a perm or put it in plaits.

"It looked ridiculous, it felt weird and I got a lot of ribbing, but it was worth it.

Damien has previously shaved his head for 25 years

"I’ve been overwhelmed by the support.”

Damien finally had his hair cut last month and was delighted to have raised so much money for Cancer Research UK. 

To donate, visit www.fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/growing-my-hair-for-a-year.