The Boris bob is the curveball cut we didn’t know we needed

Just when we thought we’d seen the back of Boris Johnson’s scruffy platinum head, we noticed cool-girls taking inspiration from his informal style. Yep, the Boris Bob is currently trending on Google with searches up by 876%* and best believe, we’re exactly as surprised as you are.

Somehow it seems that what BoJo lacks in rule-abiding, transparency and zip-lining (if you know, you know), he more than makes up for in off-beat haircut inspo. You know the Brits, we love a quirky reference – from Vidal Sassoon’s five point cut, to David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust mullet – and with choppy shags, wolf cuts and cub cuts leading beauty trends right now, it was only a matter of time before we looked closer to home for more unconventional shaggy hair inspiration. 

“Boris has become the ultimate hair icon showing us how choppy, textured hair is the way forward,” confirms top London celebrity hairstylist, George Northwood. “And really, you can’t go choppy enough: it is about leaving the top floppy and hacked into and about waking up and rolling out of bed,” he explains. “This style is achieved by not cutting your hair very often, really hacking and razoring into it and applying a ton of gunk. Go choppy or go home,” he says. 

The key to the pulling off the Boris Bob is in cultivating a super relaxed, laidback aesthetic and leaning into the mussiness. It’s all about confidence so you can sell the look effortlessly, even when you’re serving up ruffled, toilet-brush realness. If you’re here for an awkward, rebel haircut, we reckon it’s actually a vibe.

Our acting associate beauty director, Fi, was brave enough to try out the cut after toying with the idea of lopping her long hair off for a while, and the response she’s received has been wild. “It’s been so liberating swapping my long hair for Boris’ cute elfin bob. I never thought in a million years that I’d be inspired by a politician’s hair but I can’t believe how many compliments I now get from complete strangers on my hair. It’s also helping on the dating front as men seem to go wild for the Boris bob.”