Get it off your chest

Aug 9 2007 by Lizzie Houghton, Liverpool Daily Post

Men are forsaking their body hair for a smoother look, as Lizzie Houghton discovers

THERE was a time when a healthy shock of chest hair was seen as the ultimate measure of manliness.

James Bond just would not have been the same, had the girls not had Sean Connery’s silky chest rug for all those Bond girls to snuggle up to.

But, as our very own Daniel Craig’s perfectly smooth pectorals in the same role 40 years later proved, these days chest hair for men is seriously passe.

Today, the Blond Bond, along with metrosexual role models such as Frank Lampard and David Beckham, mean that, like their shagpile counterparts, chest rugs are a fashion statement best left in the ’70s.

Heck, even Wayne Rooney showcased a baby-smooth frontage when he whipped off his shirt following the Community Shield match at the weekend .

Great for women who don’t want a face-full of fluff when they cuddle up to their bare-chested fella, but not so good for Liverpudlian men who have just been outed as the hairiest in Britain.

In a nationwide survey for Braun, some 56% of Liverpool blokes confessed to having more body hair than average on their chests and other areas.

Even more alarmingly, more than one in 10 of the Liverpool men owned up to being blessed with the dreaded back hair and 13.5% admitted to shaving their backs on a regular basis to keep the fuzz under control.

Coming in close behind Liverpool in the hairy league were Glasgow and Manchester, while London men came out as being the most groomed with 23% admitting to shaving their armpits, compared to only 10% in Leeds and 13.5% in Liverpool.

The most naturally hairless city in the UK was Birmingham, with more than two-thirds claiming to be completely fuzz free.

However, it would seem with the proliferation of male grooming salons across Liverpool, our men are getting to grips with epilation.

At the Voodou for Men salon, on Bold Street, beauty manager Suzanne O’Gorman says she regularly deals with the more hirsute from all walks of life, not just your model and footballer types.

“We've had a couple of cyclists, bodybuilders and your ‘tough’ men being dragged in by their girlfriends,” she laughs.

“Most of them tend to come in for back waxing, although eyebrows are also very popular but nothing too feminine.

“Celebrity has had a massive impact on men’s perceptions of their body.”

Suzanne adds: “Also, tattoos are more popular now, so many men like to have a ‘clean’ canvas.

“We find that those who engage in a lot of sport also find it easier to have no hair, especially if they’re often covered in plasters or have to have a lot of stitches. In these cases, hairs can get into the wounds.”

Meanwhile, over at Hooka Male Grooming Studio, on Wood Street, their resident waxing expert Penni Rowe has just started offering the notorious “back, crack and sack” wax made famous in TV’s The Salon a few years back which, like the name suggests, involves the removal of body hair from the back and the male nether regions.

“The stigma attached with this particular treatment is quite renowned,” laughs Penni, one of very few therapists in the country trained in the (ahem) delicate procedure. “But we have undertaken extensive research into the market for this and you would be surprised at the amount of men who are actively having this done in the UK already.”

Trends in male body hair may change like David Beckham’s hairstyle, but it seems there is one thing that stays the same and it is the average bloke’s reaction when that wax comes off.

“Most of them don’t believe how painful waxing is until you pull out that first hair,” laughs Suzanne.

“We’ve had the odd little scream.

“I even had one man on his hands and knees begging me to stop. I had to leave him half done!”

FOR more information on male grooming, call Voodou 0870 870 5666 or Hooka 0151 708 0302

Body image

WHILE women have for years worried about their body shape and whether they are too fat, thin, tall or short, it appears men are now suffering just as much from the body blues.

New research compiled for Men’s Health magazine reveals that the modern man now worries just as much about his body and appearance as his female counterpart, and incredibly some 84% of men in Liverpool are not happy with the way their bodies look.

A further 64% of men polled in Liverpool admitted that they experienced body envy, while 40% said they would be willing to go under the knife to improve their bodies.

There were no surprises when asked who they felt had the best male Hollywood body: 43-year-old Brad Pitt, below, was the clear winner, followed by Daniel Craig and Oscar nominee Will Smith.