“Didn’t they teach you to get your hair cut at school?”
Fifty years ago today, publicity of the rumpus caused by the length of 18-year-old Davy Jones’ hair culminated with a live performance on BBC 2.
You’re possibly familiar with the story of The Manish Boys’ public quarrel with Barry Langford, producer of Gadzooks! It’s All Happening. Langford had insisted that Jones have his hair trimmed before he would be allowed to appear on the show to perform his new single, I Pity The Fool, with his band of merry Manish Boys, to which the handsome young heart-throb retorted: “I wouldn’t have my hair cut for the prime minister, let alone the BBC!”
A compromise was reached when the group agreed to donate their fee to charity if there were any complaints regarding the young lead singer’s hair. There were none.
David’s manager of the time, the late Les Conn, apparently played a large part in setting up this stunt along with DB’s first known television interview on the BBC’s Tonight show the previous November, during which Jones bemoaned the hard time he had been having to Cliff Michelmore and how this had led to the formation of ‘The Prevention Of Cruelty To Long Haired Men’.