Hair loss can be a sensitive subject for many men – but particularly for performers in the public eye.
In the times before hair transplants, famous entertainers had two options when it came to advancing baldness: wear a wig or leave their head be and let the wind run through where they used to have hair.
But despite starting to recede at a relatively early age, TV magician Paul Daniels became a fan of wigs while he still had hair.
And according to his widow Debbie McGee, the star also made fun of his own faux-hair to tickle party guests.
View this post on Instagram36 years ago today, I met this amazing man. I am a very lucky lady @thepauldaniels #magic
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Paul, who died in 2016 aged 77, was always associated with his hairpiece during his years of telly fame.
He even flogged off a previously-worn wig – said to have an auburn tinge – on eBay for charity in 2011.
However, last year’s Strictly Come Dancing finalist Debbie has now revealed the Middlesbrough-born conjuror had decided to turn to toupees before they first met to prolong his career – even though Paul “had loads of hair” at the time.
“He was a realist,” she told The Guardian.
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“He always said his wig was a business plan.
“He was a bit older, around 30, and he saw younger people coming up, and his hair was very slowly receding, so he thought, ‘If I start wearing a wig now, by the time I’ve gone bald nobody will know that I’ve just plonked a wig on.'”
Debbie, 60, also told how Paul would entertain friends by pretending his wig had come off accidentally.
“He used to sneeze at parties and it would go across the room,” she explained.
“He’d do anything to make people laugh.”
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