The Beatles hadn’t yet introduced the world to the mop-top look …
No! We revelled in the short-back-and-sides haircut, with a proud, flicking quiff at front, and so I left that Barber’s shop feeling quite good about myself.
It was about to get even better. A hundred yards down on the other side of the road, outside Leo Geoghan’s newsagent’s shop I spied a familiar figure.
‘Surely that’s not Horse?’ I asked myself. ‘What’s he wearing on his head?’
I called out his name. ‘THEO ?! I’ll walk out the Meadow Road with you!’
He clamped two hands to his scalp, put his head down, ran up Railway Avenue and proceeded to The Meadow via The Line.
It dawned on me. It wasn’t a hat! It was the dreaded ‘bowl crop’.
The poor chap was just out of Charlie McGrath’s.
‘But why run away from me?’ I wondered. I wasn’t the sort to gloat! Was I ?
As befitted his ‘monk’ hair style, Theo lived the life of a hermit for the next fortnight!
Eventually he was re-admitted to our gang.
… more later …