Beard Liberation Front

Media Release 29th December

Contact Keith Flett 07803 167266

Jeremy Corbyn wins Beard of the Year vote for the first time since 2001.

The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has confirmed that Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has bearded Prince Harry to win the annual Beard of the Year poll for the first time since 2001

There were 23,600 votes cast in the on-line poll and there was worldwide interest which in the final week saw Prince Harry and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn splitting hairs.

The Result

Jeremy Corbyn 13,365 (57%)

Prince Harry 9,480 (40%)

Moeen Ali 210 (1%)

While Corbyn has won the separate poll for Parliamentary Beard of the Year seven times he has only achieved victory in the Beard of the Year vote once, back in 2001. Prince Harry would have been the first ever member of the British Royal Family to win.

BLF Organiser Keith Flett said, with his appearance in the cover of the current issue of GQ magazine, the Beard of the Year result underlines that 2017 has been the year of Jeremy Corbyn, image wise. His beard is on trend, as much as it was, for very different reasons, in 2001, when his beard was seen as a form of rebellion against the clean shaven revisionism of New Labour

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Recent Beard of the Year winners

2016 Tim O’Rourke (Howling Hops brewer)

2015 Bryan Spooner (Weird Beard brewer)

2014 Conchita Wurst (singer)

2013 Gareth Malone (Chorister)

2012 Robin Lustig (Broadcaster)

2011 Jay Rayner (critic)

2010 Ai Wei Wei (artist)

The Beard of the Year Award is about people who have consistently had beards over the year and who have promoted a broadly positive image of the hirsute in public life.

Beard of Year 2017 shortlist was:

James O’Brien. Broadcaster and Beard of Autumn 2017

Jeremy Corbyn, politician

Michael Rosen, Hirsute Broadcaster 2017

Prince Harry, Royal

Gary Lineker, broadcaster

Moeen Ali, cricketer

Harry Kane, footballer

Billy Bragg, musician

Hefin David, politician, Beard of Summer 2017

Colin Kaepernick, NFL player

Sir Mo Farah, athlete