ARDENT fans of the BBC TV series 'Cutting It' will know exactly how seriously stylists take their hairdressing competitions.

But (hopefully) the fictional back-stabbing antics of Amanda Holden and co will be left on-screen as Blackpool's Pat Wood, of Saks Hair, sharpens her scissors for a place in the regional finals of the British Hairdressing Awards in October.

As reported in The Citizen (January 9), this is not the first time the Queen Street salon have scooped a coveted national title.

Both stylist, Wayne Scott, and salon junior, Natalie Baker, were plucked from 1000s of employees to become regional finalists in the salon groups annual Saks Award held in Birmingham on January 20.

But this time it is the turn of salon owner Pat -- who is celebrating 40 years in the industry this year -- to take centre stage to see if she can earn a place in hairdressing history by being named North Western Hairdresser of the Year.

The contest -- which is in its 19th year -- is the biggest event in the hairdressing calendar and attracts entrants from all over the county and the North West including Yorkshire and Greater Manchester.

To earn a place in the competition Pat had to submit a collection of photographs from a glamourous photo-shoot in Marbella, Spain, for a portfolio which will placed in the final round of judging in October.

The judges -- who are all hair and beauty experts -- will then choose one winner for each of the contest's 16 categories to be presented with their award at a celebrity-filled glitzy ceremony in London on November 24.

Pat -- who is also representing Britain in the Trophee AIPP 2003, known as the hairdressing 'Olympics' in Paris in October -- will be coming up against professionals from top industry names such as Toni & Guy and pitching her talent against past students.

She said: "This is a fantastic way to celebrate 40 years as a hairdresser and, even if I don't win, I'm really proud of the work I've submitted so far.

"One of the people I'm up against is actually a young man whom I trained three years ago.

"When I saw his name on the list of finalists I gave him a call and he told me he felt like the Karate Kid coming up against Mr Miyagi because I taught him everything he knows!"