Antonio (Tony) John Rizzo a hairdresser from London, has been named in HRH King Charles III New Year's Honours list 2025.
The founder of The Alternative Hair Charitable Foundation has been awarded an MBE for charitable services to Leukaemia Research and to children suffering with the disease.
After the death of his son Valentino from the disease, which is a type of cancer that affects the blood and bone marrow, Tony has raised in excess of £15 million for Leukaemia Research and blood cancer charities in the UK and overseas.
In 1983 after his first-born son, Tony made a pledge to do whatever he could to save children from leukaemia. Tony with the support of his wife Maggie; called on their many friends and colleagues in hairdressing worldwide to take part in an entirely new, ground-breaking charity fund raising event - The Alternative Hair Show.
The History of the Alternative Hair Show
Tony organised the show to present the artistic talents of many hairdressing teams who always participate at their own cost. The first Alternative Hair Show, staged at London’s Camden Palace in October 1983 was a huge success, raising an enormous £7,500 which was immediately donated to Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research, the UK’s leading blood cancer research charity now Blood Cancer UK. And so the Alternative Hair Show was born!
Thanks to medical research, supported by the Alternative Hair Show and others, 90% of children with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia will survive for at least five years after their diagnosis, compared with just 10% in 1960.
At each event, as well as money being made from ticket sales, Tony decided to do an additional appeal during the evening. The money raised from this appeal goes towards treating families who have a child suffering with leukaemia to a ‘respite’ day out. Day trips have been organised to London Zoo, Legoland and he has even taken families away to Disneyland Paris for the weekend. It's an amazing experience for these children and their families to spend some quality time together away from the hospitals and treatment clinics they are used to. Each child and parent who attends also received a ‘goodie bag’ full of gifts which have been kindly donated from people and companies in the hairdressing industry. The Alternative Hair Show gives these families a chance to have fun, but also to share their experiences with other people in the same circumstances.
The Show has grown into one of the most exciting and sought-after events in the international hairdressing calendar. The Alternative Hair Show gathers hair creatives from across the world to raise money for Leukaemia research. Hosted at venues worldwide; starting at London’s Camden Palace it then moved to The Hippodrome and as the show’s popularity increased there was a demand for a larger venue which took the show to London’s Royal Albert Hall and even Salon International. The Show has also been staged in USA, Italy, Russia, Vienna, Seoul, Tokyo, Ukraine and Taiwan, among others.
The annual spectacle showcases work from some of the most creative hairdressers in the world. The Alternative Hair Show is known for its unique creativity that has inspired generations for over 42 years. The Alternative Hair Show is deeply thankful to all artists and sponsors who have supported the show over the years. From over 200 International artistic teams, visionaries and patrons from all over the world.
