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Aquick test of your current
affairs knowledge: can you
name three celebrity hair
stylists?
Hands up everyone who thought of
Nicky Clarke and then struggled to
come up with more… Most of you,
eh? Not to worry, the same thing
happened when we tried it in the
editorial office.
Not since the swinging
60s, the era of Raymond
"Mr Teasy-Weasy"
Bessone and Vidal Sassoon, has
there been a stylist to the famous
who has become quite such an
A-list celebrity in his own right. In
Nicky Clarke's case the fame is well
earned, and his ability at his art is in
no doubt. It takes a rare talent to
sweep both the British Hairdresser
of the Year and London Hairdresser
of the Year awards in the same
year.
Nicky Clarke's career began in the
most auspicious of environments. In
the 1970s, at the age of 16, he went
to work at the legendary Leonard's
of Mayfair.
"I was advised - and rightly so, I still
believe - not to go to college. Go to
a good salon instead. Start at the
bottom, sweeping the floor and
polishing the brass. You know you
can't go any lower, so you
concentrate on aiming high."
His aim was obviously true. Nicky
now owns salons in Mayfair,
Manchester and Birmingham. He
opened the Mayfair salon in 1991,
at the urging of his business partner
and former wife, Lesley. It was a
great move; the business rapidly
went from strength to strength, and
the list of rich and famous clients
Tilly displays T1 LYC on
her limited edition pink Ford Ka
Nicky Clarke
just got longer and longer.
Gwyneth Paltrow, Sophie Dahl,
Yasmin le Bon, George Michael,
David Bowie, Gary Kemp,
Damon Hill, Nick Faldo,
Gary Lineker, Denise van Outen and
others have all visited Nicky. And
then, of course, there are the royal
clients… but space is limited, so
we'll stop there for now.
successful
In addition to the salons
themselves, Nicky and Lesley have
widened their focus to include their
own haircare products. In 1993,
they introduced the highly
successful Nicky Clarke
Hairomatherapy range. Additional
lines have followed including the
Nicky Clarke Electric range of home
styling tools, and Colour Therapy
and Vita Therapy supplements to
promote optimum hair health.
Nicky Clarke's status as the king of
hairdressers is beyond doubt, as
are his household-name credentials.
Indeed, he has popped up in the
most unexpected places - especially
on television: Hell's Kitchen, Comic
Relief, Shooting Stars, An Audience
with Elton John, Absolutely
Fabulous… Then of course there
are the regular appearances on
daytime TV. Pretty much any makeover
show worth its salt has sought
his involvement.
So, when Nicky Clarke decides he
would like to personalise his car a
little, there is only one number plate
that really says it all: H41 RDO.
The Regtransfers.co.uk team
delivers Nicky's new plates on the
day of the interview. Nicky is
delighted, and now sports the great
registration on his Jeep. His
daughter, Tilly, obviously
appreciates the perfect match as
soon as Nicky shows her the
number.
"No way! Oh my God, that is so
cool! And it's really quite subtle."
Nicky's son and daughter are well
qualified to judge: they are both
personal plate veterans. Tilly
displays T1 LYC on her limited
edition pink Ford Ka, and Harrison
has D8 HJC ("Date Harrison J
Clarke") - a kind of joke whose
effectiveness Nicky doubts.
"Yes, it was kind of a pulling thing
but just a fraction too subtle. No one
ever got it! They just saw the D8."
"No," insists Harrison, tongue firmly
in cheek. "One of my best friends,
about a year after I got it, said
'aren't those your initials?'." A hint of
gentle sarcasm creeps into his
voice, as he grins, "I was like, 'No!
Really?'."
enthusiasm
The whole family's enthusiasm for
their personal plates is quite evident
and it is great to see people really
enjoying them. Harrison in particular
is a fan.
"I am always looking at plates," he
says. "I just think they're good.
Something simple like three letters
on a car, it stands out." Harrison
produces his mobile phone and
shows a photo he took of a plate he
saw and particularly admired near
where he works.
Nicky laughs. "You just went and
took a photo of it?"
Nicky is actually the last member of
the family to succumb. Lesley also
beat him to it: her Porsche bears
the impressive 1LC. After some
time, Nicky began to realise that
everyone around him, both family
and friends, seemed to have added
the personal touch to their vehicles,
and he did start looking.
>>>
Summer 2006