The hairstyle was first worn by French fashion guru Henri Mollet in the early seventies. The "Mollet" did not see much light apart from in the french underground dance scene, until it was ressurected by popular television personalities such as Pat Sharp, the word having been anglicised by this point to "Mullet".
From the football field to school classrooms, the quintessential Australian haircut has made a grand comeback in recent years. The mullet - hair long at the back while trimmed short on the sides and front - has long been championed by Australian men in the 80s.
Ailsa, who describes the Australian mullet as a "way of life", agrees. "Australians love mullets because we consider ourselves to be larrikins," she says. A larrikin, similar to a ratbag, explains the BBC, means a cheeky rule-breaker in today's society, but in the 1800s meant urban, working-class youths.
The short-long hair style, popularized in the 1980s, has a surprisingly proud history and has been sported by rebels and respected leaders alike.
No list would be complete without David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust era mullet. Among the singer's many looks, this is the most iconic. Even Meryl Streep rocked a mullet. The award-winning actress wore the style in the 1983 film Silkwood.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, use of the term mullet to describe this hairstyle was "apparently coined, and certainly popularized, by American hip-hop group the Beastie Boys", who used "mullet" and "mullet head" as epithets in their 1994 song "Mullet Head", combining it with a description of the haircut: ...
But the hairstyle itself is popularly attributed to David Bowie in 1972. Bowie adopted the proto-mullet style for his Ziggy Stardust alter ego: bright red, spiky in the front and cascading gently onto his neck. Bowie gave the mullet androgynous, counterculture swag.
This hairstyle, known to some as the 'Lion's Mane' but known to most as the Mullet, came into prominence in Australia in the 1970s and 1980s.
(Larson and Hoskyns 13) Mullet itself has slang terms such as the Kentucky waterfall, the camero cut, the beaver paddle, the ape drape and the neck warmer just to name a few. To me, all of these things describe a mullet.
Wolf cut hairstyles are a mix of two popular current haircut trends, aka the shag haircut and the mullet. Both these trending hairstyles feature a mix of layers and bangs. While the mullet is a short haircut, the shag haircut can be short, long, or mid length. When put together, it results in unique wolf haircut looks.
While not a local invention, there does seem to be something quintessentially Australian about the haircut: it's laid-back, practical and suggests the wearer doesn't take themselves too seriously. And in our history, there's perhaps one mullet that looms the largest.
The mullet is a hairstyle that we Aussies have claimed as our own. It's got history, it's Larkin, it's wild and these days it comes in endless variations. The hairstyle is more popular today than ever before and we believe that the mullet is truely the most "Australian" hairstyle of all time.
Do NOT shave this breed, as it messes up the delicate balance of the coat, which insulates them from heat and from cold by holding a layer of temperate air close to the body. The coat may never grow back the same if this breed is shaved.
The mullet. Business up front, party in the back - it's a hairstyle that has shapeshifted in and out of fashion since its inception. The name itself wasn't coined until recent times, with the Oxford English Dictionary crediting the Beastie Boys' 1994 classic Mullet Head for common popularisation.
Aussie Word of the Week
Must be the stunned mullet, a classic piece of Aussie slang from the 1950s that refers to a person who is completely and utterly stunned, amazed, dazed or otherwise stonkered.
Other Mullets include: Bluespot, Bluetail, Broadmouth, Broussonnet's (often confused with Sea Mullet), Diamond, Diamondscale, Fantail, Fringelip, Goldspot Greenback, Hornlip, Kanda, Otomebora, Pinkeye, Popeye, Rock, Roundhead, Sand, Spiegler's, Wartylip and Yelloweye.
Defined Shullet
"This is a great option if you like the idea of a mullet but want to keep some length in your hair," comments Calhoun. The best part? Any hair type and texture can pull off this cut, she adds. All it takes is priming with a texture spray throughout.
skullet (plural skullets) (informal) A more extreme form of the mullet hairstyle, in which the hair at the back is kept long, whilst the hair on the top and the sides is shaven in a buzzcut or skinhead style. quotations ▼
The female mullet is the modern, choppy variation of the classic '80s style. The cut stays true to its roots with short bangs, but the transition to a longer back is not as extreme. The cut uses choppy layers to gradually blend the bangs into a longer style in the back, similar to a shag.
The mullet hairstyle has seen a global resurgence - but many in Australia claim it as a cultural icon. The BBC asks locals why it's such an enduring obsession.
One of the reasons we love the mullet is that it's one of the few hairstyles that looks sick when you wear a hat and get a little bit of hair flow in the back. So if you aren't ready to go full Vin Diesel yet, the skullet might be for you. While often associated with white men, women have embraced the mullet as well.
According to History.com, the mullet has been “sported by rebels and respected leaders alike”, and, thanks to its practical and adaptable shape, “warriors with the style were harder to grab during battle and could fight without the frustration of hair in their eyes”.
One theory about the mullet comeback is that it is a product of the Covid pandemic, as a result of people who previously had short hair letting it grow out.
It depends tho. If your mullet goes down to your shoulders, is greasy, looks bad, then no, But short-medium cut ones look hot lol. Most girls dislike them, but it's a personal preference. Anyways, get one because you want it don't worry about what girls think of em.