A fantastic team of mini-Alopecia UK representatives did an amazing job for us when they interviewed the one and only Matt Lucas!

We would like to say huge thank you to all the children for their incredible interviewing efforts and fantastic questions. We also want to thank Matt for taking time out of his very busy schedule to let our mini-Alopecia UK journalists quiz him on everything from alopecia, to his favourite jokes to Great British Bake Off!

Matt was incredibly kind and provided the children with a valuable insight into his own experiences with alopecia, following his diagnosis with alopecia areata at the age of 6. Thanks to the fabulous questions posed by our journalists, we also got to see some of Matt’s comedy including a little impression that raised some laughs amongst the team.

We hope any children watching this video will feel inspired to see they’re not alone with their alopecia and that having alopecia doesn’t stop them from achieving anything they want to do.

Not only is the resulting video from the interview both entertaining and heart-warming, we’ve also been hearing back from parents about how much of an impact speaking to Matt has had on the children involved.  We share this feedback below because it gave us ALL the warm fuzzy feelings at AUK HQ!

Children and young people affected by alopecia continue to inspire us and we will continue our work to develop resources to help them. 

Feedback from parents:

“It is always invaluable for Lucy to integrate with other children with Alopecia. Lucy aspires to be a presenter when she's older and to see Matt Lucas who has achieved so much in his life makes her dream seem like it is within her grasp.”

“Dante was so impressed with the whole meeting. He feels more confident and his outlook on alopecia has shifted to the more positive. He's accepted that hair doesn't make the person.”

“We were all buzzing after the interview. Jessica loved seeing other people with alopecia and it has definitely improved her confidence levels. He was so encouraging and positive. Jessica returned to school, as a keyworker child, and stood up at the front and told the group all about the interview. Huge progress at school!”

“Maiya’s confidence has increased significantly. There is more pride in the fact she has alopecia which is lovely to see.”

“Matt was so positive about his Alopecia journey, i think he encouraged all the kids to be open and confident in themselves and their futures! Isaac was overjoyed and really came out of himself in what’s been a tough time!”

“Jonathan felt the interview was for him, and others with alopecia, who all understood exactly what it's like to have alopecia as a child. Matt Lucas was funny and kind. He really understood what it was like for the children and he had great advice, particularly about 'not letting alopecia define who you are’.”

"Henry was so very nervous before the interview. But it did him the world of good to: 1. see other children with alopecia. 2. spend time with Matt, a wonderful role model and 3. have a giggle. We have all been speaking to Henry about Matt sharing that 'alopecia does not define you'. We've had some great virtual conversations with friends and family and done our best to raise awareness of alopecia."

"I think it was a superb opportunity for all the children involved to be able to openly talk about their Alopecia with someone famous who has made the most of it! Matt Lucas was very personable and connected with all the children really well. He spent a lot of time to make all the children comfortable and why their Alopecia gives them an advantage. He made the interview really easy, by being well prepared and knowing plenty about each child he spoke to."

"Sophie has definitely developed some acceptance of her Alopecia since the meeting with Matt and the other children, before the meeting she would never talk about her alopecia to anyone (even me, her mum!) and when I would mention it she would either walk away and refuse to talk or get upset but since the meeting she has spoke to friends, family and teachers about the meeting telling them all about the meeting, the questions the children asked and Matt's responses. Sophie's musical theatre teacher asked her on a live Zoom call with the rest of her class how she got the chance to interview a celebrity and to my delight Sophie was happy to tell her teachers that it is because she has alopecia and Alopecia UK were looking for children with alopecia to interview Matt!"

"Dougal felt really happy after the interview because he got to see other people with alopecia and everyone was talking positively about it. Dougal is looking forward to the interview coming out and is writing a summary about the experience for his school newsletter to increase awareness. Dougal came off the interview buzzing and said he’d like to do some fundraising!"

"Matt was very relaxed and took lots of time to get to know each of the young interviewees too. They could relate to him, and many of the experiences he shared. It was great it wasn't all about alopecia too. It was a fabulous opportunity for them to practice their interview and presenter skills, and trial out the idea of job roles. Sienna is super excited to share the link with her classmates too which will further allow her to continue to talk openly about alopecia, and reduce the chance of any negativity or bullying."

"Emily loved every minute of meeting Matt Lucas. I heard Matt say he quite liked his alopecia as it's given him lots of attention over the years. Emily squealed when she heard this. "He's like me Mum! That's what I think about mine". She loved seeing the other children. I think she found it quite liberating seeing children with no hair coverings. She's quite open about her alopecia, but she couldn't wait to get back to school to tell her friends. She's doing a talk next week to her whole class on alopecia and meeting Matt Lucas."