JANUARY 8th - GANDALF THE PINK

A damp morning in Middle Earth, and who's this, tramping through the forest?It's Gandalf!Gandalf the Pink!My brother took these just a few days before Christmas - they were going to appear on the blog as my Christmas greetings entry for you all, but I ended up being rather busy in the lead up to the 25th, so here they are, posted late! Again, I'd like to thank you all who have donated, and hope you have enjoyed the blog. This will probably be the last article that I post, unless I have some follow-up news. Off I go - goodbye!

JANUARY 3 - BEARD-BE-GONE

I've just remembered how much I hate shaving.

And now I also feel distinctly unsexy.

Long Hair + No Beard = Not Nice.

I'll arrange a day with the good people at Kick Hair in Twickenham, so that they can unleash scissors, trimmers, clippers and shears upon my barnet, and whip it into a bit more of a shapely shape.

I miss my big beard, and no doubt I'll have another beard at some time in the future, but I do feel a bit naked without it. It's nice to feel my face clean-shaven again, and not having to worry about spillages when I'm eating eggs or yoghurt (the only things I had difficulties eating whilst hirsute), but I do miss my be-he-heard.

(That's me boo-hoo-hooing whilst typing beard).

JANUARY 2 - DE-BEARDED!

Just after midnight, at the dawning of the New Year, a little pair of nail scissors was produced, and my beard was ceremonially snipped off.
The battery for my clippers hadn't charged up enough in time, so I had to keep snipping and snipping until the chin was cleared away. But I decided to keep some hair, for a 19th Century style mutton-chop look. (At least, until I can cut it all off).
I'm actually very sad to say goodbye to the beard, as I had started to really enjoy it. I miss not having a big ol' beard on my chin to fiddle with, and also my chin gets very cold when I go out.
When I had a beard, it wasn't itchy at all, at any point, but with my current 'pink Lemmy' look, it is rather itchy where the hairy bit meets the shaved bit.
The end of my beard is in a little jar in my room.
I'll collect up the last of the donations in the next few days, put it into the Primhe account, and then present the charity with a giant over-sized cheque. I've no idea of the final total, but I'm fairly sure that we've broken the £1,000 mark.
Thanks to all of you!

A piece of ribbon appeared as if from nowhere, and I was humiliatingly 'decorated' for the occasion.

Snip, snip, snip!

My beard!

My new "Pink Lemmy" look!

DECEMBER 27 - 4 DAYS TO GO!

Yes, there's only another four days to go, and then I can finally shave!

In a way, I'll be quite sad to get rid of my big pink beard, but I think it's by far time that it came off. I suppose it's 5 months that I've been bearded, and I really will notice a huge difference shaven - especially as it's a little cold out!
I'll collect the last of the donations tomorrow, and deposit them into my Primhe account - I'm sure we've collected over £1,000, and hopefully I'll have a chance to meet up with Chris Manning, the Primhe CEO before I shave.

For those of you visiting the blog for the first time, here's a little info, so that you don't have to scroll down too far...

Primhe is a charity providing primary mental healthcare and education for those who suffer from mental illnesses and depression. To help, you can either donate at:
the Real Ale shop, 371 Richmond Road, Twickenham (where I work),
the Old Anchor, also on Richmond Road (my local pub), or
the Rifleman, 4th Cross Road, Twickenham (where I used to work).
Donations can also be made through the Primhe website, at
www.primhe.org

Thanks again to all those who have helped - I hope you all had wonderful Christmasses, and wish you all the best for the New Year.

DECEMBER 25 - BUON NATALE!

Merry Christmas to all who have donated to Primhe whilst I've been magenta, and also to those who have helped me during this period, or visited the blog.

I'm fairly confident that we've managed to reach the £1,000 mark!

I'll keep on raising money and being magenta through till New Year's Day, and then take drastic action to alter my appearance. Apparently I was featured in an article in the Richmond Guardian, but have been unable to get my greedy little fingers onto a copy, otherwise it would have been scanned and posted on the blog by now.

Once again, Merry Christmas, blogfans - one and all!

[pictures to follow]

DECEMBER 22 - COMEDY

Oh, and by the way, blogfans, at the Bearcat Comedy Club, not one of the four comedians said a thing about my pinkness!

DECEMBER 22 - SNOWMEN

Yesterday as I was walking in Twickenham, buying a few presents, two little girls dressed as snowmen accosted me, and asked me for money for charity. Whisking back my wooly hat to reveal my flowing pink locks, I told them that all my charity donations this year would be given to Primhe.
"I've dyed my hair & beard to raise money for them for two months". I said. To which one of the girls replied, "What, are you stupid?"
What a delightful child.

DECEMBER 18 - STAND UP

Well, I'm confident that we've reached the £900 mark!
Thanks so much to all donators.
Tomorrow I'm off to the Bear Cat Comedy Club in St Margarets to see Omid Djalili. I'm expecting to bear the brunt of comedy ridicule, but I think if I can heckle back loud and long enough, I might just get my own TV series...
In the next few days I hope to post some new photos: some of me going back to my days training to be an army officer and testing out British "Disruptive Pattern Material" whilst pink-bearded, and another of me as a pink Fidel Castro.
Watch this space, blogfans!

DECEMBER 11 - LUNCH WITH THE RAKES

Hello blogfans,

I had a delicious lunch yesterday with the Rake Society, at Harry Lester's fantastic 'Anchor and Hope' restaurant on the Cut, Waterloo.

We went for drinks afterwards at the Oxford & Cambridge Club, so I had to wear a jacket and tie to get in. I think I'm pretty used to walking around now with a big pink beard, without getting too self-conscious, but that changes greatly with a suit and tie! At least when I'm wearing normal clothes I look a little more normal, but with a suit and pink beard, the contrast is more noticeable.

I had wanted to get some photos taken of me at the O&C Club, with old members "Harrumph"ing in the background. The expressions on the faces of some of the old geezers were priceless - I found it hard not to laugh out loud. The look of disbelief on the face of one guy displayed his complete inner mental turmoil "Egads, that young lady has a beard!"

Fundraising is going well - I think we've raised about £850 this far - thank you to you all!

Once again, the money is going to Primhe, a mental health charity who provide primary healthcare and education for people with mental illnesses and Depression. The Primhe website is at: www.Primhe.org and there is a page in their site where you can donate directly to the charity, and even donate with Gift Aid, so that Primhe can claim back 28p from the Inland Revenue for every £1.00 donated.

DECEMBER 4 - I'M BACK!

Hello blogfans!
I've not posted for a little while, because I've been away! I went up to Glasgow on Sunday night, for a surprise visit. My brother's at university there, so I decided that I'd go & see him before the Christmas rush at the shop gets too inescapable.
Glasgow is great. Life there isn't as cotton-wool-wrapped as down here in Twickenham, and people just get on & do things - hardly anyone commented or seemed to notice my hair & beard! I met some very interesting people, nonetheless.
I'd had my beard re-dyed on the Friday, so I'm not as pale as before.
I'm just writing this as I'm drying before work, so I'm only writing a little, just to say "Hello, I'm still here, and haven't been beaten up yet." And that I'm still magenta. I'll transform this into a real proper post this evening when I get back from work, and sit down in front of my "Vic Reeves Big Night Out" DVD.
Until then... Here's a "Before & After" shot...

NOVEMBER 23 - NATIONAL BEARD REGISTRY

I've just registerd with the National Beard Registry!
I'm Beard Number 2509 !!

On the confirmation slip, there is a disclaimer stating:
"You may be proud to have joined your brothers in corporate culture resistance." !!!

Here's their manifesto:

"The National Beard Registry has been established to encourage men in all walks of life, from every continent, to resist conformity, corporate culture, and androgyny by embracing the beautiful, unique and utterly personal habit of growing a full beard.

"In past generations, it was normal for men to grow full beards. Images from the past are filled with men who grew full beards. Military men, men of letters, activists, politicians, judges, farmers, professors, big men, small men, great men, heroes, famous and infamous men alike grew full beards.

"Today, wearing a full beard is often looked down upon and discouraged. Men with full beards are now accused of being un-patriotic, whatever that is. How silly we have become. Ninety-nine Civil War generals and admirals wore beards, three went on to become President of the United States, (their beards went with them).

"All beards are beautiful and worthy of registration. But the majestic and magnificent full and aged beard is the ultimate quest of The National Beard Registry. Like a fingerprint, a year or more of full growth on a man's face produces a one-of-a-kind appearance that defies trend, pop culture, and media driven conformity. It is a very natural and beautiful symbol of individualism, and honors the self-expressed essence within each man.

"It is our belief that by establishing the National Beard Registry, we will be supporting individual creative expression, resisting blind conformity to media driven corporate culture, and promoting the notion of a world where every individual is valued.
The National Beard Registry is based in America but the word National in its name applies to any nation. International boundaries are only in our minds. Conformity is an international malaise. Beards are beautiful on every continent.

"We therefore call for all men - who can and desire to participate, to grow a full beard, with only minor trimming for neck comfort, eating or kissing. We gladly register ALL beards of any length or type. We are also looking for naturally outrageous growth such as the braided Fu Manchu, dreadlock full beard, or long goatees and sideburns etc. You may register your beard online or at our booth at a festival near you.

"Thank you all men of conscience, together we will change the face of the future."

NOVEMBER 23 - CELEBRITY BEARDS

Hello there!

I thought it was high time for another blog entry.

The most popular entry by far, on one of my other blogs, is a post where I've taken some silly pictures of myself in various outfits, trying to get some feeling for characters that I was drawing.

(Photos are on http://grotesquefurniture.blogspot.com

drawings are on http://nazigold.blogspot.com )

So I decided to take some with me & my pink beard.

During my bearded days, many people have said "You look just like..."
Blackbeard, Osama Bin Laden, Cat Stevens, Captain Caveman, a rabbi, Che Guevara, Fidel Castro, Ricky Villa, a hermit, Brian Blessed, Rasputin, Jesus, etc etc etc. I have a list somewhere of my lookalikes.

Anyway, so yesterday, out came the camera and my box of assorted hats & accessories. I had enough props to make myself look like Che Guevara, and like Osama too, but I don't think I'll post the Osama pictures, just in the tiniest most miniscule chance that some loonie sees the picture, takes offence, and then hunts me down and jihads my ass. (Very slim chance, I think, but still, the Osama fans are not people to get on the wrong side of...)

So here it is: Pink Che!

In other news, I've been looking at other beardy blogs today, one of which was: http://www.placeboma.com/bigandbeardy/Which held this fascinating revelation: I'm not sure if this is true of women suffering Depression, but I'm sure research is underway.

The site also had links to http://www2.b3ta.com/namethatbeard/ which is rather fun!

You may also want to visit www.nationalbeardregistry.org

But of course, the most important thing is to keep donations coming in for Primhe!

www.primhe.org

NOVEMBER 22 - MESSAGE FROM PRIMHE

Chris Manning, Primhe's CE has now emailed me no less than three times thanking me so much for my barbered support. Chris has lots of local contacts and is receiving regular reports of sightings of the 'Purple Bearded One' all over the locality. One of Primhe's staff today suggested that this mechanism would be far more effective than tagging!

NOVEMBER 17 - TOUGHER THAN I THOUGHT

Hello hello.

I never thought this was going to be a stroll in the park, but never thought that I'd find times to be so moving. It's been quite tough hearing people's experiences of depression this week, but I'm very flattered by the number of people who have felt comfortable in approaching me and opening up so much.

I think a number of people have heard about what I'm doing for Primhe, or have read my posters, and have then approached me as though I'm a sort of 'depression guru', and might have some answers. Really, the best I can offer is to listen. Another six weeks of this will probably be quite hard work.

After hearing some very moving stories on Tuesday, I couldn't help but feel quite emotional.

In other news, keep your eyes on the Richmond & Twickenham Times - hopefully my gurning mug will appear in its pages in the next couple of weeks!

Last night, I dreamed of shaving, and was quite upset (in a way) when I woke up to a shock of pink hair and beardiness this morning. I'm increasingly looking forward to shearing it all off at the end of the two months - I'm beginning to forget what I looked like before the beard, and in fact, if I ever did exist before the beard...

NOVEMBER 14 - MY SHOES

Hi again - just posted the cartoons, and have seen that they've not all come out the right size, and some of the detail & text isn't terribly visible.. I'm happy to share these, however, so if you'd like me to email you the jpegs, please get in touch.
(Please note: in the colour images, you can see my awesome trainers: Adidas Cross, which I bought in New York, and are the best trainers ever! I rather use them as a "self-portrait" motif nowadays, but am not sure for how much longer - they're starting to wear out!

NOVEMBER 14 - CARTOONS

People have told me I'm brave for dyeing my hair & beard, but I don't think I am at all. Something I've been delaying, something I've been scared to do is to publically show some of the pictures that I've drawn when I've been at my lowest, coming out of dark places, or trying to understand the little crazinesses in my head. I've decided to post these images today - just some from 10 books of similar drawings that I had decided never to show anyone. These are pictures from a time that I have left, happily, in the past (although I still do think of myself as a bit of a Quixote, a Nerval, and a Stanshall - and for you literary types, even as a bit of a Raoul Spifame).

I'll add some further text at some point - I'm currently running horrendously late, because I have to get some photos to the Richmond & Twickenham Times - I finally managed to get an interview with the paper - not through my copious amounts of emails, but through barging into the offices yesterday evening!

Anyway, hope you are all well and sane.

As always yours but forever myself,

CT.

NOVEMBER 11 - THE POINT

Thank you to everyone who has laughed or smiled at my beard - I think they've got the point.

NOVEMBER 9 - ALL GOING WELL

Thank you so much to those who have contributed so far!
I collected the cash & cheques from Real Ale & the Old Anchor yesterday, and will set up an account today for the cash to go into: at the end of the two months, it will all be transferred across to PRIMHE, so we can see what the grand-total will be!
So far, in a little over a week, we've raised over £350, which is really great.
Obviously I'm hoping for more - hopefully local newspapers will get their act together and reply to my emails! I'm going to arrive in fine style at the Informer Newspaper's offices in about half-an-hour, and ask for some coverage!
Just to repeat, donations can be made at:
Real Ale Ltd shop, 371 Richmond Road, Twickenham,
The Old Anchor pub, 71 Richmond Road, Twickenham,
The Rifleman pub, Fourth Cross Road, Twickenham,
or by emailing me at Chaos@London.com for details.
You can also donate through the Primhe website www.primhe.org .
Their donations page is at:
www.primhe.org/markup/support-donate.cfm
Or you can send cheques addressed to "PRIMHE" at:
Unit 6
2A Laurel Ave
Twickenham
TW1 4JA
Thanks once again,
As always yours but forever myself,
Chris.

NOVEMBER 7 - DISADVANTAGES

So far, my only problem with this beard and this colour, is that I've met a really nice girl, who I'm dying to ask out (dyeing, ha ha!), but she's only known me with a beard. She doesn't know that beneath this beard is a non-beardy!
I can't imagine that a big pink beard can be much of a turn-on for sane intelligent beautiful girls, so I'm a little worried about making myself look ridiculous by trying to ask.
Anyway, let's see! Who could resist this:

?

My god, I'm handsome! What a nose!

(Who'd have thought that it's been broken twice!)

NOVEMBER 7 - CARTOONS

If I'm feeling brave tomorrow, I may publish some of my cartoons that I'd drawn for Primhe at the end of 2005 and the beginning of 2006, when I was at a fragile stage. I had wanted to keep them private, but I've got this far, so why not got the whole way? So many people have told me I'm brave for doing this dyeing for 2 months, but I'm really not. Dyeing is just a gesture.
Dyeing has been really fascinating, watching people's reactions, and how they see me - smiles and scowls, laughter and insults, questions and indifference.
To dye - that is the greatest adventure!

*Later note: Nov 11, Still no cartoons posted, but I'll try to scan some tonight if I remember.

NOVEMBER 7 - WIERD THINGS ARE HAPPENING

Yes, wierd things are afoot - today I ended up borrowing a shower-cap from my mum, so I can shower without my hair getting wet (and therefore too much dye coming out in the wash). I'm still keeping to my daily shower routine, but I was told that I should try to only wash my hair once a week, to keep the colour in. (That's a bit nasty, so I'm washing it once every 2 days!)
But even with a shower-cap on, I can't always keep the beard dry, as it touches my chest, and gets a little splashed. So the edges are getting a little blonde, and my roots are emerging rapidly...
The colour of this mass around my face is rapidly changing (I think it's looking cooler by the day!)
The highlight of my day was when a family came into the shop today, and their little son thought I was Father Christmas. I was hugely moved, and hugely grateful that he offered his whole week's pocket money of 50p as a donation to PRIMHE. When I remember how many sweets that 50p could buy when I was his age, it made me realise how much of a sacrifice he's made! Yes, I may have grown this beard for 3 months, and am keeping it magenta for another 2 (and therefore 5 months of no fun with girls), but, this young fella has denied himself a whole week's worth of sugar. And that is an effort that we all should applaud.

NOVEMBER 6 - ONE WEEK IN...

Thank you to all the England and New Zealand rugby supporters who donated over the weekend!

Here are a couple more photos taken at my drinks evening at the Real Ale shop last Monday. PINKBEARD!!!

NOVEMBER 4 - STILL PINK

This was taken at a drinks evening on Monday - thanks to all those who attended and donated! Hope you all had a great night. I spent most of the afternoon posting posters around Twickenham. I still found it rather frustrating how many places won't accept charity posters, but would like to thank all the pubs, restaurants, laundrettes etc who took my posters today. There's even one up outside Twickenham station, which I'm rather chuffed about.

There's international rugby at Twickenham tomorrow, England vs Argentina, which is expected to be a capacity crowd of 82,000. I'm hoping that a good number see the posters.

I'm working in the shop tomorrow, so unfortunately I can't go out and leaflet as much as I'd like to, but I'm hoping a fair few pop into the shop and leave a little donation, or come in and collect a flyer. And then of course, I can pop into the Anchor after work, and see if I can drum up a little more interest there too.

NOVEMBER 2 - SCHOOL REUNION

Well, tonight I went to a school reunion type-thingy in central London - the first time I've travelled away from the Richmond/Twickenham area since dyeing...

I was really actually quite nervous about doing so, as at least round here I have some posters up, and I'm reasonably well known round here. But I have to say it was OK - people didn't seem to bat an eyelid. On the train to Waterloo I bumped into an old friend from university who I hadn't seen for years, who didn't recognise me at all until I spoke to her!

And at the reunion, I was really pleased by the reaction I got. Yes, there were lots of people who came over just to have a look, and to satisfy their curiosity, but there were also a whole bunch of people who asked what it's all about, and gave me their encouragements. I'm so glad that so many people believe in what I'm doing. Many thanks to those who expressed an interest in donating and asking for details of this blog!

I'd also like to thank all the people who have been coming into the Real Ale shop & leaving donations, and everyone who have left donations at the Old Anchor. I haven't been back to the Rifleman to check for progress quite yet.

In general, people's responses here in Twickenham have been great - lots of smiles and thumbs up, cars honking horns, and people saying "I love your hair", or "What's it for... good luck!" The occassional group of school kids have given me a bit of sarcasm, but when I've told them its for charity, then they've been OK. Old women have tutted, or crossed the street to get away (!) but they've got blue or pink rinse hair anyway, so that's frankly hypocritical... One guy leaned out of his car window and shouted "Freako!" to me, but he's obviously a nob, and not a contender for the Nobel Prize for Wit and Intelligence. (I am!)

However, I've discovered something quite disturbing about the whole situation: namely, the state of my moustache... The moustache was the most difficult area to bleach and dye, because it's right between the nose & the mouth (that's where you USUALLY find them anyway), and we didn't want either bleach or dye in either of 'em. And as the tips of my moustache hairs sometimes end up being dipped into the top of my pint, or brushed as I wipe my mouth after eating, the dye is fading fast!

By the end of the week, I could have a pink beard and hair, but a blond 'tache!

Quel catastophe!

I'll try to get a photo up soon - there's no one awake to take one at the mo!

Another thing that I've noticed is that after having the bleach in my hair for almost one-and-a-half hours on Monday, I had some inevitable dandruff this afternoon (it seems to have gone now). But it wasn't ordinary dandruff - the scurf was pink!

Good night, beard-fans!

OCTOBER 31 - DYED!

I was a little nervous turning up at KICK HAIR for my dyeing. I'd got rather fed-up of being bearded, and was really scared of changing colour. But, still, I arrived at KICK HAIR. As Dominic mixed-up the bleach, I sat into my chair, and a CD started to play - the Doors. Riders On The Storm. It didn't do much to calm my nerves... In this photo, you can see that the first application of bleach has started to lighten my hair (underneath the placcy bag, to keep the heat in,and therefore maximum bleach activity).After bleaching the hair, the beard was to come next. Dominic had told me not to wash my hair before coming to be dyed, but I'd forgotten - apparently washing opens up the pores, and makes bleaching more painful. Anyway, at this point, the bleachiness was just rather tingly. But when it came to bleaching the beard, it was not so nice. Ammoniac stenches shot up my nose, which was horrible, I didn't want to breath through my mouth, and my eyes started streaming if I kept them open. Not nice.It was about this point, with plastic bags around my head and face, pores fully open because idiot had washed his hair that morning, that it started to feel as if someone had grated my head & chin with a cheese-grater, and was rubbing chilli-oil into it. Not pleasant. You can see my hair is bleached blonde by now, and the tache is following... I couldn't keep my eyes open because of the fumes.And here I am, bleached, looking like a Rider of Rohan. I rather liked this look - I was kinda like Ewan McGregor, halfway through "Long Way Round".

And this is the first application of dye. It was so dark, I was quite upset as I thought this would be how the final colour would be - difficult to describe, as I couldn't understand how much colour would wash out. And I looked like a deadly polar-bear who'd just eaten a seal. Eek.



But after bleaching, it was OK. Mission successful, so far.
What do I mean, "mission successful"? I look like a freakyboy! Just have to hope the donations keep coming...

OCTOBER 29 - DONATING

Hello there again sportsfans.

There is a gift-aid section on the PRIMHE website:

www.primhe.org/markup/support-donate.cfm

If you wish to donate to PRIMHE through the gift-aid page, please remember to include in the form that you've been alerted to the charity by my magenta beard, so I can keep a better idea of how much I'm helping to raise!

Alternatively, cheques should be made payable to 'Primhe'.

The office address is:

Unit 6

2A Laurel Ave

Twickenham

TW1 4JA

On Friday, I had a telephone-interview with Radio Jackie, which will be broadcast on Monday. I hope I didn't stutter over too many of my words, and made sense!

Radio Jackie's broadcast range covers much of SW London, so hopefully there'll be a decent response.

Thanks also to a friend of my family, who has offered to help with printing posters - (it'll save me from having to colour in many more!) I'm not sure if he wants to be credited, so for now I'll leave him anonymous.

It's only 19 hours until Kick Hair start the bleaching/dyeing process, and I'm getting increasingly scared! After the colour's in, I will be scuttling all around Twickenham and Richmond putting up posters, and asking shop-owners and high-street businesses whether I can put up posters in the future. It's all about publicity now, and I hope that it'll be a bit easier with strange-coloured hair than it has been so far!

CT.

OCTOBER 29 - VIV STANSHALL

Hello there!

Today, I'm just posting a little something new - the lyrics to an obscure song (and rare to find), by my hero Vivian Stanshall. Most people probably only know him for his days with the Bonzo Dog Band in the 1960s, but he was so much more. A song-writer, singer, multi-instrumentalist, playwright, poet, author, comedian and performer. He is, to me, one of the greatest Englishmen to have ever lived. He died on March 5th 1995. He'd fallen asleep, dropped his cigarette into his beard, and then asphixiated before the house burnt down around him. I can't attach the file, I'm afraid, but I did try!

Vivian Stanshall was a brilliant talent, but was never prolific in his public output, as he suffered from depression. His depression was heightened by his love of drink, and the anti-depressant drugs that were prescribed to him - the mixture of pills and booze did not mix well. By all accounts he was impossible to work with, and tormented by his inner-demons on his bad days.

Apologies to Ki Longfellow-Stanshall if I've used a private picture here - I'll be in touch soon to see whether it's OK to keep this one here. ( http://gingergeezer.net )

I think Vivian Stanshall captures, perfectly, how depression can be, in this song. As far as I know, it was never published.

the Future.

If I had the confidence,

The courage or the common-sense,

The hutzpah or some happiness,

Then I could face the future.

If I could find a kindred spirit,

Wouldn't mind a friend to share it,

I'm the thing with feathers

That perches in the soul.

All that's second best in me

Is crying out for sympathy,

A nagging insecurity

Is begging me - don't try.

If there were an easier way,

A magic I could try,

Or someone else to do this thing for me,

Then fear must say its prayers...

Tonight.

OCTOBER 27 - THE BALL STARTS ROLLING

So after a frantic day of emailing yesterday, finally things seem to be happening. Whilst I'm still waiting for responses from all of the newspapers (and most of the radio stations) that I have contacted, Radio Jackie 107.8FM have agreed to interview me at noon today - I'm not sure how long the interview will be, or when it will be broadcast, but we'll see how it goes, hey?

I also had another phone-call from Kick Hair in Twickenham, who are going to dye me on Monday, just to confirm times and colour, and that I'll have to bleach it all first... (Eek.)

I didn't realise that the magenta colour will fade out after about 2 weeks, so I'm going to have to keep topping-up the colour!

I also printed out the first posters yesterday - I've decided it's probably easier to do them myself (especially as the local Post-Office can photocopy in A3). Unfortunately, this means that the posters have to be hand-coloured, which is a pain in the arse, but it means that I can easily make more posters if I run out, without having to bother with a printing company.

The posters were put up in the Rifleman pub, Fourth Cross Road, and in the Old Anchor pub, Richmond Road (both in Twickenham), and the response was really good - not much in the way of donations, but a lot of support. I was surprised by the number of people who came up & asked about my opinions on Depression, and how much people opened up with their own stories & experiences.

It ended up being a very moving evening.

A lot of people have asked why I'm dyeing Magenta. Well, I'm dyeing magenta for two reasons. Firstly, because magenta is the company colour for where I work, www.realale.com , and also of Kick Hair.

I figured that my boss wouldn't object so much to being dyed company colours, than if I was dyed an outlandish shade of blue or green, and also that Kick might be more willing to dye me!

Secondly, I suppose it might be quite cool to look like Animal from the Muppets.

But actually, I'm rather tired of this beard now - I've had it for three months. Three months of looking like a cartoon character - but that's been OK. But because I work in the beer industry, it is a little cliched that I should have a beard (& occassionally wear sandals!), and being at the Twickenham Beer Festival last weekend, surrounded by CAMRA beardos, I have started to feel a little weary of my facial hair. Still - only two months to go, and then I can shave again!

But I have a little magenta beardy adventure to experience first...

OCTOBER 26 - A LITTLE MORE INFO

The following is a little text that I wrote for my other blog, http://grotesquefurniture.blogspot.com , when I decided that I was definitely going to do this, and there was no turning back...
"About 3 months ago, I stopped shaving. Usually I'm crisp, clean shaven, short haired, and look the very model of a modern British citizen. But after 3 months of ignoring my razor, I now look like a freakish beardy - which is what I suppose I now am. The reason I've not been shaving, is because I intend to dye all this mass of hair magenta. Yup. The whole beard, all the hair. Magenta. I think my hair-mass weighs about four kilos now, so I will look quite a shocking sight. But this act of shameless dyeing is for a purpose, not just a change of looks. I'm dyeing it for charity - for Primhe, a charity which deals in primary healthcare for people with mental disabilities & Depression. Depression affects so many people (you probably don't need to look further than a family member, the man who you see at the train station each morning, your best friend, the lady at Tesco, the man next to you at the bar...), all trying to deal with things in their own way. Whilst depression is ultimately something that individuals have to sort out themselves, Primhe is there for people at every stage along the way. I've been wanting to help Prime for quite a while - initially it was to provide some of my cartoons for Primhe leaflets & publications, but I feel that by dyeing all my hair so that I look like Animal from the Muppets, is a much more public way of helping out.
I really hope to advertise what I'm doing, to highlight that Primhe is there. So many people don't think that there are people out there to help them.Even if I can't raise much money, if I can raise awareness, that would be great. After Stephen Fry's recent TV programme, and the amount of feedback from the press in its wake, Depression is really in people's minds at the moment (if you excuse the pun), and I really think (and hope) that people are starting to think of Depression as a real and tangible thing - a problem that many many people have to live with, and not an some affliction to excuse people's tantrums.Obviously, there are some people who don't understand, but as long as there are TV programmes, and charities out there, being loud & open about things, then that is a good thing. If anyone wants to find out more, please visit the Primhe website at http://www.primhe.org/ (which is just about to be updated), or send me an email - also if you'd like to sponsor me, then do get in touch. You can also leave a comment with your email address, and I'll get back to you."
In this country, there is no word to describe illnesses of the brain other than "mental". And when describing someone as 'mentally ill', most people see the stigmatic word "mental" than "ill". Primhe is dedicated to changing this perception, and helping those 1-in-4 of us who will fall ill during our lives.

OCTOBER 26 - WHERE CAN I DONATE

At the moment, if you'd like to donate some money to Primhe, please visit their website at www.primhe.org, or contact me at Chaos@London.com.
Donations can also be made at:
Real Ale Ltd: at their shop at 371 Richmond Road, Twickenham - just over Richmond Bridge.
The Old Anchor pub: also on Richmond Road, just next door to where the Mongolian BBQ used to be.
The Rifleman pub: on Fourth Cross Road, Twickenham (although I have to confirm that with the landlord).

I'm hoping that I'll be able to get hold of some collecting tins too, and stand on some street corners!
If anyone could help promote what we're doing, please please get in touch!

OCTOBER 25 - LETTER FROM PRIMHE

The following is a letter from Dr Chris Manning, explaining a little about Primhe - the charity who I'm raising money for...

“We all have a brain and sometimes it gets sick when the parts of it that deliver our mind (or ‘mental’ function) break down.
1 in 4 of us can expect that to happen at some time in our lives. The chances are that if this doesn’t happen to our own brain it will happen to the brain of someone else we know, love or care for. Even if we don’t get mentally ill as such, most of us are familiar with how we feel when we are stressed and the methods we use to cope with it (both healthy and not so healthy).

Primhe stands for Primary care mental health and education.

The charity works with people like GPs, pharmacists, nurses and people who design health care services, to help them to understand what is now known about the brain and its mental functions and what works best for us all when we, or those we love, are ill.
To do all this, Primhe has a website, produces journals and educational and training materials and meetings. The charity also lobbies hard for the importance of proper funding for people who are ill and the setting up of all sorts of facilities in communities (eg. exercise, self-help books in libraries, mindful employers who care for their staff) that keep us mentally healthy. Primhe has over 1000 supporters nationally and is now in the 5th year of its operation.

Primhe is extremely grateful to Chris Thomas for dyeing for Primhe!
Please give him all the support you can on his bearded mission to help the charity make a difference to the quality of life of thousands of people with mental illness in this country.

Very Best Wishes and Take Care of Your Brain!”

Dr Chris Manning, CEO Primhe
Dr Ian Walton, Chair of Trustees
www.primhe.org

OCTOBER 25 - WHAT AM I DOING?

Hello!
My name is Chris Thomas, and I work for www.realale.com , from their shop in East Twickenham. Since June, I have been sporting a rather bizarre appearance… In June, I felt that I had to do something for a charity called Primhe. Primhe is a national charity, run locally in Twickenham, which provides primary healthcare for those who suffer from mental illnesses such as Depression.

Since June, I have abandoned my normal look, and started to grow out my hair and beard (those of you who have been into the shop since then, or visited our stand at the GBBF 2006 will no-doubt have spotted me, and cowered back in shock and fear!) The reason that I have done this is so that I can dye my hair and beard in realale.com’s company colours of Magenta, and be a walking advertisement for Primhe. I hope to raise as much money for the charity as I can between now and the Dyeing Day (or D-Day!) of 30th October, and from then until after Christmas. (I’ve not decided what will happen to it after then – I really do want to get rid of it already – but I may have become rather attached to it by then. Beards do kinda grow on you…)

Since my hair & beard reached a certain bulk, I have experienced a noticeable change in people’s reactions to me, and it’s not always been that favourable. I get particular grief from my parents’ friends who warn me that it’s “unsafe for you to use public transport looking like that”, and from my father who is convinced that I’m “losing it”! In many ways I’m really not looking forward to turning magenta on Halloween, and the walking around looking like Animal from the Muppets, but it’s something that I feel that I need to do.
Primhe has recently been set up, and needs all the funding and publicity that it can get.
If you’d like to help Primhe by donating money, (and justify my multi-coloured hair adventure), please contact me at Chaos@London.com, or Primhe at info@primhe.org. Real Ale customers can also donate money at our shop at 371 Richmond Road, Twickenham.

The Primhe website can be found at www.primhe.org, for those seeking further information. In addition to this newsletter, there will be posters displayed across Twickenham, Richmond, and Teddington, as well as (hopefully) articles in the local press, and on local radio stations. If any of you would be able to further advertise this, or provide further advertising or funding for Primhe, any offers would be gratefully welcomed.

I’d like to thank Nick & www.realale.com for putting up with me through this, and also to Kick Hair (26a York Street, Twickenham), for agreeing to dye my beard & hair for free. In doing this, they’re temporarily shelving their talents & skills in creating stylish hair fashions, and dyeing me to look like a freak!
Thank you for your time,
As always yours, but forever myself,
Chris.