A CHARITY haircut raised over £1,300 for the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity at the weekend.

Lizzie Bedford, West Alvington, and Sam Wasilewska, Loddiswell, held an event at the Crabshell Inn, Kingsbridge on Friday night. There was a raffle and an auction, with prizes being donated by local businesses.

The chop itself, which saw nearly four feet of hair cut off from Lizzie and Sam, was performed by Jade Kershaw and Jody Reeve of Base Pop Up Hair Salon in Kingsbridge, with owner Rebekah Etoe finishing off Lizzie’s style.

Base generously donated the cost of their cuts to the charity and the hair itself has been donated to the Little Princess Trust, who provides wigs for children with cancer and other illnesses.

‘To be able to raise so much money for such a good cause is amazing,’ said Lizzie, ‘but to raise all this money from the endless generosity of everyone in the community is mind-blowing.

‘We have not just raised money for The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity, but we have raised awareness; for this charity, for the Little Princess Trust and for everyone who is affected by cancer in some way, to know that you are not helpless and we can beat cancer - one step at a time.

‘Thank you so much to everyone, and I love my new hair!’

The pair chose the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity to support as friends and family are currently being treated there, and the fact that they are a smaller charity means more money goes directly to research, treatment, diagnosis and care.

The raffle on Friday, which raised £770, included the top prize of a stay at the Mullion Cove Hotel in Cornwall, the sister hotel to the Thurlestone, and was won by Billy Proctor.

After the raffle was drawn, Dave Grover from Triocean Surf in Churchstow auctioned off a paddleboard session for four people, including ‘all the drinks’ in the Crabshell afterwards. After an intense bidding war, this was sold to Chris Povey who narrowly beat Joe Cumming to the prize, adding another £210 for the charity.

In a late and unexpected addition to the final total, two people, after a few beers, challenged Lizzie’s boyfriend Matt Liptrott to cut his hair to add an extra £200 for the charity, so Base’s Jade stepped in again to do the honours.

Many people also donated online, and you can still donate to the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity through the JustGiving page: www.justgiving.com/Lizzie-Bedford1/

The pair would also like to thank Bella Borsa, The Bed Expert, Marchand Petit, Herring Shoes, RW Bawdens, the Hope and Anchor Inn, the Ring ‘O’ Bells, Mill Valley Bakery, Quercus Brewery, David Taylor School of Motoring, Habit, Posh Totti, Mangetout, Healthwise, Kingsbridge Wine Room, Hope Cove Gallery and Bocchinelli, who donated raffle prizes and Simon at the Crabshell for hosting them.