Melton church member causes a stir with hair-raising stunt

Frances Levett wth her eye-catching new mohican hairstyle which she hopes will raise thousands of pounds for her church EMN-210524-115539001

Frances Levett’s hair-raising venture has already attracted hundreds of pounds in pledges towards a major refurb job at the town’s St John’s Catholic Church.

The colours in her radical new hairstyle match some of those in the Victorian paintwork uncovered at the hstoric Thorpe End building.

Frances, who is chair of the Friends of St John’s, told the Melton Times: “I went to church with the new hairstyle on Saturday night and everyone seemed to really like it.

Frances Levett, pictured before her radical fundraising mohican haircut in aid of Melton's St John's Catholic Church EMN-210524-114736001

“My four-year-old grand-daughter thinks I’m a unicorn - she screamed with delight when she first saw it.

“I must admit I am having difficulty with it in this rain and wind we’ve been having, though, because it is a high maintenance style.”

The church, which was built in 1842 and designed by famous architect A.W.N.Pugin, originally sported intricate colourful artwork but unsympathetic alterations over the years have damaged the integrity of the building and the features were painted over.

The current work involves repainting the sanctuary, using elements and motifs from the original Victorian design, but with a somewhat lighter touch. The artists are using traditional clay-based paints, and Frances’ fundraising efforts will contribute to the £45,000 cost of the project.

The signed Marcus Rashford Manchester United shirt, which is being raffled to raise funds for a refub of Melton's St John's Catholic Church EMN-210524-132658001

Frances added: “We set up a JustGiving page for donations and encouraged people to share the link.

“There have been various fundraising events as part of this, and to encourage people I said that when donations reached £1,000 I would have my hair cut in a mohican and coloured red and green to match the Victorian paintwork uncovered on the sanctuary arch.

“I have kept my promise and added a blue colouring too, as this is the colour of the new design on that arch.

“These three colours are the dominant ones in all the stencil work and intricate artwork, so I match the church very well.”

Friends members are hoping to raise £4,500, a 10th of the cost - go to www.justgiving.com/campaign/fosjmm to pledge money.

The coffers will be swelled by a raffle which includes a signed Manchester United football shirt from star striker Marcus Rashford.

The shirt is an adult medium size and is signed on the chevrolet sponsor sign on the front.

Tickets are £1 each and can be obtained by emailing [email protected] or by calling 07790 631635.