Blair’s hair: Brad Pitt or Gandalf?

When the former prime minister appeared on ITV to discuss Scottish independence last week, all anybody wanted to talk about was his silver mane

Tony Blair
Tony Blair's ‘luxuriant mullet’

“What is going on with male politicians and their hair,” asked Vanessa Friedman in The New York Times. For decades, they all had the same boring, short cuts, but all of a sudden they’ve started generating controversy with their exotic barnets. Donald Trump led the way with his “incredibly complicated cream puff of a construction”. Then came Boris Johnson, with his artfully mussed platinum locks. And now Tony Blair has outdone them both by appearing on television with a luxuriant mullet. The former prime minister was discussing Scottish independence in his ITV interview last week, but few paid attention to his words. All anybody wanted to talk about was his silver mane. Comparisons on social media ranged from Gandalf to Doctor Who to David Icke, to an unspecified member of Genesis, and Vigo the Carpathian, a bloodthirsty sorcerer from Ghostbusters II. Some asked whether it heralded a comeback tour by Blair’s university band Ugly Rumours.

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