APPROACHING the end of ‘Movember’ and Oxfordshire is getting hairier every day.

Movember – a combination of ‘moustaches’ and ‘November’ – is the international fundraising campaign which encourages men to grow moustaches to raise awareness of prostate and testicular cancer.

At Sophos in Abingdon, a normally clean-cut bunch of 23 IT professionals are showing off their own brand of ‘software’ with a collection of moustaches to be proud of.

And at Grundon Waste Management in Ewelme, near Wallingford, 17 workshop and technical staff are perfecting an exotic look to go with their new nickname – the ‘Taschmanian Devils’.

All the men taking part pledged to avoid their razors for the whole of November to raise sponsorship money for research into the two forms of cancer. Prostate is the most common cancer in men in the UK, killing 10,000 men each year – 100 men a year in Oxfordshire alone – often because they are too embarrassed to get themselves checked out.

The leader of the now swarthy bunch at Sophos, Pedro Pinto, 29, said: “We are now truly hairy and are known as Mophos!

“We have raised over £1,500 so far, with Mark Burdett leading the way having raised £525.” The group raised £2,000 by sprouting fuzz last year and even have forfeits for not reaching their personal fundraising targets.

If Mr Pinto does not raise £500 he will have to keep his ’tache until April, while others will be forced to dye theirs bright orange.

At Grundon Waste Management, workshop manager Paul Wheatley, 40, said: “I heard about Movember last year but this is the first time we have taken part and it has raised a lot of laughs.

“Growing moustaches hasn’t been as easy as we thought – they start itchy and then turn irritating. Three weeks in I am seeing a lot of guys stroking their faces!”

“The older ones among us have been doing pretty well with our facial hair, while some of the younger ones have struggled and had their legs pulled about it.

“It’s a serious matter though, and I’d like to think Movember will raise lots of money and make us all more aware about our health.”

Staff at Carrier Refrigeration in Littlemore have also so far raised almost £2,200.

To find out more, go to the website uk.movember.com