Superstitious Derby fan shaves decade-old beard

Richard Scott, 55, last shaved his beard in 2014

A superstitious Derby County fan has shaved off his decade-old beard after the club's promotion to the Championship.

Richard Scott, 55, last shaved his beard after his team's 5-0 win over bitter rivals Nottingham Forest in March 2014.

He pledged not to shave again until the team got promoted to the Premier League.

Ten years later, he will instead reach for the razor after the Rams secured a promotion campaign to the Championship.

Mr Scott, who lives in Derby city centre, finally had a clean shave at Dandy Gent barbers on Friday.

In doing so, he raised £4,800 for charity Mental Health Matters.

Mr Scott has raised £4,800 for charity Mental Health Matters

"It's very weird, it's very draughty around the face," he said.

"I was very, very nervous, but when there's nearly five grand on it, you can't back out.

"It was just a silly challenge I set myself, and then it sort of morphed into this 10-year odyssey, and now we're promoted, and now I've had a clean shave I kind of feel vindicated."

Mr Scott started the challenge after getting a clean shave ahead of the Cheltenham Festival in 2014.

Richard Scott said he will not start the challenge again as Derby bid for Premier League status

The Derby fan said he did not think he would have to wait another 10 years to shave it off, with his team favourites for a Premier League return.

However, The Rams lost in the play-off final to QPR, and despite a number promotion attempts, were relegated to League One in 2022.

They secured a return to the Championship with a 2-0 win over Carlisle United in April.

Mr Scott said he will not start the challenge again as Derby bid for Premier League status in August, but will grow back some of the beard he became fond of in the past decade.

Follow BBC Derby on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail] or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.