Day 308: Movember Begins (Officially)

I have often been tempted by the lure of facial hair and Movember gives the perfect opportunity to grow some. This year, at the end of October, I made sure that I was clean shaven for the start of November/Movember. I had to make sure that my workplace were happy for me to take part – and I have now done so – hence the title. Today was the first time I could explain my reasoning for taking part to my head teacher and gain her blessing to look like a fool for the rest of the month.

The main reason is the support of causes to raise awareness of men’s health – in particular prostate cancer, which my dad has battled and won against. It’s the first real opportunity I’ve had to do something to help the cause. Keen eyed people will notice the very visible Movember section on the left of this blog where you can make donations through my page.

The Movember journey began in 2003 with a few mates in a pub in Melbourne, Australia. The goal was simple – to create a campaign promoting the growth of the moustache among like-minded people and have fun along the way. It is about real men growing real moustaches, talking about real issues to help to change the face of men’s health. Movember now spans the globe with campaigns in 21 countries.

In 2012, over 1.1 million Mo Bros and Mo Sista’s pledged their allegiance to the moustache and raised over £92 million globally. In the UK, there were over 363,000 participants raising over £27 million.

This year, even model locomotives are getting in on the act (see related articles).

Still, looking like an idiot for a bit is a small price to pay to aid those who need it. Expect some terrible photos of me in the coming days… I will be using this blog to raise awareness of men’s health issues too throughout Movember too.

If you would like to make a donation to Movember, please visit MoBros.co/MrPitts.