Boys from Bedford School have transformed a 70s disco song into an ode to growing a moustache – to raise awareness of mens’ health and mental well-being.
The group of around 80 Upper Sixth Form students, known as the MoBros, have been taking part in Movember, setting up a host of activities and sporting challenges for the school community to get involved in.
The charity campaign, which runs through November, has become an annual tradition at the school, with hundreds of boys and staff doing their bit for the cause every year.
Last year the MoBros gave the lyrics to Drake’s chart-topping hit God’s Plan a hairy makeover, renaming it My Tash for their unique fundraising music video.
This year’s cohort have taken on the 1977 disco classic ‘Staying Alive’ by the BeeGees – rewriting the lyrics with a moustachioed theme – click here to watch it.
Despite writing and recording the song in the midst of a national lockdown, the MoBros have managed to get more students involved in the video than ever before.
Upper Sixth Former Tom Allen, who wrote the lyrics for the song, said: “I have enjoyed it massively, despite the stress of doing it in two weeks during a lockdown. With the COVID-19 regulations it just took a lot of time to organise – finding out when people could record, fitting around them and working in smaller groups to record different sections. This year we had the most people singing the song we have ever had, so that’s just amazing.”
Music video director and pupil at the school Edward Mathew-Jones said he had loved being part of the project: “It has been a challenge so far, especially with the social distancing. We have 80 boys in total in the video. Getting them all to listen and be in the right place is pretty tricky. It has been really fun but a busy two weeks.”
The MoBros also organised a raft of sporting challenges for Movember, including dodge ball and Aussie rules football games.
Ashlesh Chandrapu set up a 60k challenge at the school, where students were tasked with running the distance during the month of November. However, he decided to take it up a notch with his own personal challenge.
He said: “I am also doing a 300km in 30 days running challenge. It’s been good – painful but good.”
Ashlesh said Movember was important as it gave people the chance to think more about men’s mental health, especially at a time where loneliness and isolation can be a real problem.
“It’s about letting men know that it’s ok to talk with others about things that are bothering them. There is such a stigma for boys that they just bottle it up. People can feel very isolated, especially at the moment, so it’s important people don’t feel alone.”
The MoBros also led a Movember Citizenship morning for all the boys at school, hosting a series of presentations about the biggest health issues facing men across the world.
The sessions, featuring guest speaker and Movember ambassador Nathan Thomas, were live streamed to classrooms around the school.