Marty onto a winner after having double hair transplant

Radio and television presenter Marty Whelan has undergone two hair transplants.

The Winning Streak host, who also presents a programme on Lyric FM, underwent the transplants last year and is delighted with the results.

He said: “Over the course of a morning a line of hair follicles was taken from the back of my head and then in the course of an afternoon they were transplanted to the front. It was all finished by teatime.”

Most people he bumped into noticed something about his appearance, but couldn’t quite put their finger on it.

He subsequently underwent a second transplantation, which should come into bloom very soon.

And he refuses to put the process down to vanity alone. “If I wanted to look younger I would have gotten rid of the moustache. But I’m in a business where appearance matters. And if you don’t look right on TV that is hardly conducive to a long future.”

In the past Marty, 57, dyed his hair regularly but some years ago decided to let nature take its course and reverted to its natural grey, earning him the title among his legion of female fans as ‘the silver fox’. Most colleagues and viewers applauded his honesty and thought he looked far more natural.

Unfortunately nature also decided to take on a rapidly thinning hairline for the star.

Throughout his long career Whelan has had his ups and downs, being dropped by 2FM and before that having to sign on the dole after Century Radio closed down.

But he remains reasonably philosophical about these blows and has earned himself something of a reputation as a comeback kid.

“These things can be appalling. But that’s the industry. You go home, close the door and deal with it.”