A British man has been awarded the title of ‘best international mullet’ so it’s time to forget about the ‘business in the front’ and focus on the ‘party in the back’.
Rob Ayton, from Bideford, Devon, was crowned at the annual Mulletfest in Kurri Kurri, New South Wales, Australia, an event which welcomes mullet-lovers from across the globe to come and celebrate their funky hairstyles.
Rob has been criticised for his hair in the past, and has even been compared to an 80s porn star, but he’s grown to love the style after getting his first mullet cut three years ago as a joke while on holiday in Australia.
He was able to attended Mulletfest this year while on another visit to Australia, explaining:
I was coming out here for a skateboarding competition and it just happened to time with me being out here for that so I could go out to Kurri Kurri and see the mullet fest itself.
There was eight of us from all over the globe, it was good fun. A good laugh.
Mulletfest judges contestants based on their haircut, overall presentation and stage presence.
Speaking of his win, Rob said:
It was actually amazing, I was so stoked. There were 12 entries, eight of which actually turned up.
The standard was way higher than I had first envisioned. I won the ‘international’ category, so I have the best ‘international’ mullet.
The competition has a number of categories, including ‘Vintage’, ‘Grubby’, ‘Extreme’ and ‘Everyday’, as well as Rob’s ‘International’. There is also the coveted ‘Overall’ award for the best mullet of them all, which this year went to Australian Paul Gee and his lengthy locks.
Check out the overall winning mullet here:
Rob wasn’t keen on his mullet when he first got it done, but over the years the style began to grown on him and he decided to keep it long at the back, in spite of the criticisms he’s received for the cut.
The 31-year-old, who works as a graphic designer, described how his opinions changed, saying:
Three years ago I came over to Australia got a mullet haircut, chopped it up in irony really.
I’ve never been a fan of the mullet or the rats tail, but I have to say I do like the mullet now so my point of view has changed dramatically.
You couldn’t print a lot of the comments I get. The most PC one is ‘you look like an 80s porn star’. Generally feedback in the UK isn’t great for mullets however more recently I’ve had better comments about being an individual, whatever that means.
Rob’s hair now sits around his shoulder blades, and he admitted growing a good mullet takes ‘time and patience’, as well as ‘being able to handle a sh*t ton of negative feedback’.
Hopefully Rob’s win will make those who give him ‘negative feedback’ think twice about their comments – it’s not every day your hair wins an award!
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Emily Brown first began delivering important news stories aged just 13, when she launched her career with a paper round. She graduated with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University, and went on to become a freelance writer and blogger. Emily contributed to The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and Student Problems before becoming a journalist at UNILAD, where she works on breaking news as well as longer form features.