Hair that’s a party at the back, is back in style

On the streets of Hobart, an iconic 80s hairstyle is in fashion once more - delivering business at the front and a party at the back.

Abe Barnard and Dan McBride wear their mullets with pride in Hobart, Picture: EDDIE SAFARIK

FOR some there is a sense of deja vu, for others a sense of horror.

But whether you like it or not, the mullet is back.

On the streets of Hobart, the 80s hairstyle is a fashion statement once more - delivering business at the front and parties at the back.

“The mullet is timeless,” said Dan McBride, 29.

Mr McBride said he last sported the hairstyle as a boy at school, and the warm sense of nostalgia it offered him seemed to have the same effect on others.

“People react really well to my mullet,” he said.

He said some people were so taken with the hairstyle they couldn’t believe it was all his own doing.

“People keep asking me if it’s a wig,” he said.

Hairdresser Roseanne Anderson, co-owner of Cyber Hair at Kingston, said the mullet were more popular on boys than men and becoming increasingly popular among women.

“Mullets on women are very trendy, and on the right person they are actually quite beautiful,” she said.

Notwithstanding, Ms Anderson said she was not sure about mullets on men - a feeling that has remained with her since she first started cutting them in the 80s.

But Abe Barnard, 31, said the style needed to be worn to be understood.

“I have never felt more at home in a haircut” he said.

Mr Barnard and Mr McBride, both from Sydney, were sporting their mullets in Hobart while on holiday.

The pair said the hairstyles were the rage in Sydney and Melbourne, so it is likely more mullets could be headed Hobart’s way.

Hairdresser Jacob Perkins, from Sfumato Hair in Hobart, said the look was popular among teenagers, festival goers and art school students.

“You need confidence to pull it off,” he said.

He said a couple of people a week came in wanting mullets.

The trend seems to be influenced by popular culture, such as the science-fiction drama Stranger Things, set in 1983. Sports stars are also keeping the iconic hairstyle alive, such as AFL player Bailey Smith and Australian cricketer Adam Zampa.