Ciaran Collopy

Bedford Stuy, Temple Bar

“I came into the game late,” Ciaran says of hairdressing. “I started when I was 20. Before that, I was doing graphic design in college, but that wasn’t working out, so I ended up getting an apprenticeship in a salon in Temple Bar, and just took it from there.”

What does he enjoy most about it? “It’s creative, and it doesn’t get boring. You never do the same thing twice, even for the same client. The customer interaction is great, and I’ve made really good friends out of it. I don’t even call it work — I get up in the morning, and I look forward to coming in.”

“My clients are mostly men, or women who go for short hair,” says Ciaran, “and they talk about all sorts. I don’t think we could publish most if it! It would have to be really out there to surprise me at this stage. Working in Temple Bar for so many years, it would take a lot. No one’s confessed to murder yet! Mostly, it’s relationships, what they get up to at the weekend, their hair. Men are far more into hair these days.”

The first step, he says, is establishing trust. “The first thing I do in a consultation is to establish a bond. I’m the first person apart from this guy’s wife or partner who actually touches his head, and I’m pretty much in control of his image for the next couple of weeks, so he has to trust me.”

How did he get involved with Salon Confidential? “One of the guys I work with put me on to the show, and it was a whirlwind,” he says. “From the moment I was put in touch with the producer to the date we started filming would have been eight or nine days. I was one of the last ones cast.”

And, is he loving it? “Yes. It’s something new, a challenge — being taken out of your comfort zone, being in front of cameras, which I found I really enjoy. If someone had told me three months ago that I’d be doing all this, I would have said, ‘No way!’”