A viral Manchester United fan who has pledged not to cut his hair until the Red Devils win five games in a row has starred in a new Paddy Power advert as his date with destiny appears to near.
Frank Ilett, who is known on social media as The United Strand, began the challenge last October as a way to ‘spread some humour’ amid a difficult period for the club. His journey has seen him gain significant fame, with Ilett now boasting 585,000 followers on Instagram.
United have won three matches in a row, beating Sunderland, Liverpool, and Brighton, and could make it five if they get the better of Nottingham Forest and Tottenham in their next two matches.
It means Ilett could be getting a trim as early as November 8 after the game against Tottenham, and Paddy Power – who are known for their quirky skits – have leant into the online talking point in a new advert.
‘It does make me sad actually,’ the barber is seen saying in the video. ‘I miss him. He is one of my best customers. Well, he used to be.
‘He doesn’t even bother to make appointments anymore. What’s the point?’
Ilett can then be seen saying: ‘It just started as a bit of fun really. I didn’t expect it to go on this long, but it’s actually fine. If I’m having a bad hair day, I can just put on a hat.’
The barber continues: ‘Two things you stay loyal to: your football club and your barbers. Now I wonder, will I ever see him again?’
The skit then cuts to Frank discussing a number of free gifts he has received, saying that companies have been battling to be the ones to carry out the haircut ‘when the time comes’.
After suggesting Anthony Gordon has the ‘weirdest hair in football’, Ilett is seen running into his barbers, shouting: ‘It’s time!’ as his barber embraces him, questioning: ‘Man United have won five in a row?’
Letting his barber know that it is in fact just three, he tells him he will be booked in for when the time does eventually come. ‘I’ll be back soon,’ he says, as he leaves.
The skit then cuts to six months’ time, and the barber is seen sweeping hair and looking out the window, with Ilett walking past with an even larger afro than what he is currently donning.
The video ends with the barber saying: ‘F***ing United.’
While Illett has drawn huge support from fans of all clubs during his marathon run, he was involved in an ugly altercation with a fellow United supporter during the team’s victory over Chelsea in Septemer, with the other supporter grabbing his hair and attempting to shove him to the ground.
Ilett was pulled away but looked taken aback by the ordeal and managed to get some distance from the other fan who was restrained.
The furious supporter, who seemed to take issue with Ilett’s challenge, then said: ‘F*** off, f*** off, I’ll do what I f***ing want.
‘Listen, he’s not a United f***ing fan, so f*** off, f*** off.’
In the video, which went viral on social media, the fan then attempted to make a move for Ilett again but was unsuccessful.
Posting on his Instagram page after the victory, it didn’t appear that Ilett’s day was soured by the incident, however.
Sharing a photo of himself in the stands, he said: ‘What a place. Wet hair, but still a smile on my face! A big win today! What a crazy game it was in the end! 1 down, 4 to go. COME ON UNITED!’
United have since banned the individual who attacked Illett.
