There’s nothing like a bright new image in the face of impending doom. It’s the oldest trick in the book and one that Rachel Reeves surely considered when she briefed her hair colourist this week. “Take me battle red,” I imagine her asking, with thoughts of the autumn budget at the end of this month on her mind.
One could argue that Reeves is simply plugged into the trends - according to global Pinterest data, searches for “Foxy red” hair are up 1530 per cent since this time last year, whilst “cherry blonde” has seen a 6300 per cent growth and “deep cherry red” 920 per cent. Thanks to the likes of pop stars Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish and actress Megan Fox – all brunettes who’ve spiced up their hair colour in the past year or so – red is the shade du jour.
But when you hold the country’s finances in your hands, a dramatic restyle doesn’t happen on a whim. Reeves’s move from brunette to red would have taken serious contemplation. “Red is a very powerful colour, it shows strength and determination,” says celebrity hairstylist Josh Wood. “Red hair can be seen as risky and racy and linked to dangerous women,” he adds, conjuring images of Jessica Rabbit, Ginger Spice (often referred to as Sexy Spice) and Christina Hendricks’ role as Joan Harris, a 1950s “sexy secretary” in Mad Men.
Red hair has been steeped in meaning for centuries. During Queen Elizabeth I’s reign, red was fashionable thus her wigs were deliberately dyed to order – as were those of her courtiers and horse’s manes. At other times, red hair has been associated with going to battle. “People who were attacking and invading (England) — tended to be red haired. So from the earliest times they represented invaders,” hair historian, Rachael Gibson, told CNN in November last year.
Warrior queen Boudicca is always depicted with red hair despite minimal historic evidence of this – but Reeves exuded a similar spirit as she strode through Westminster on Wednesday wearing a red blouse to match her new hair.
The message behind one’s hair colour often depends on the tone of red and the way in which it’s applied and styled. Wood, who helped initiate the trend for high-vis red at Alexander McQueen’s Autumn/Winter 2020 catwalk show explains that because the redhead gene is extremely rare (less than 2 per cent of the world’s population are natural redheads), whatever end of the red spectrum you go for, you’re never going to blend in. “Rachel Reeves means business, she wants to be noticed,” he says.
Reeves’s new hair colour symbolises both play and power. And with less than a month out from the autumn budget, there’s no better armour than a battle red new look.
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