IT will be cut-throat competition when a barber aims to show people he can offer them Britain’s best shave.

Gareth Clark, from Wallingford, will go head-to-head against 14 other hopefuls at the South-East regional heat later this month.

The new competition was launched this year on the back of the growing popularity of traditional wet shaves with a cut-throat razor.

The British Barbers’ Association puts the jump in popularity down to “the rise of the metrosexual male, and the need for men to look good at work and guys wanting to look dapper in tagged photos on Facebook and Twitter.”

Mr Clark, 42, runs Gareth Clark Hair For Men with wife Tracey in Didcot’s Broadway. The dad-of-three said: “It is a real buzz; it’s great to be recognised for what you do. I really enjoy it.

“It’s partly because the fashion is moving towards being clean shaven and well groomed.

“And if you look at films like The Great Gatsby, the style is coming back into trend.

“The shave is a lot closer, it is quite pampering having someone shave you and really enjoyable.”

The barber of 26 years left Wallingford School at 16 to work as a trainee at Thames Salon in St Mary’s Street, Wallingford.

Mr Clark will have 30 minutes to perform the best wet shave on January 29 in Poole.

He will find out if he has made it to the finals next month.