A snip at pounds 20,000; I GET UK's PRICIEST HAIRCUT.

Byline: LOUISA PILBEAM

IT'S enough to make your hair curl all by itself - pounds 20,000 for a cut and blow dry.

But celebrity stylist Stuart Phillips reckons it's a snip. And he has a string of uber-rich clients queueing for his five-figure pampering session.

Stuart's swanky salon in London's Covent Garden has Swarovski crystal chandeliers and soothing Japanese shampoo beds.

It has become the place to go for the wives of Russian oligarchs as well as a galaxy of A-list stars.

And while Stuart's services don't come cheap, you do get a whole day of being treated like royalty, with champagne on tap and anything you like from the menu at the five-star Covent Garden Hotel just across the road. And if you're flying in from Moscow or New York, no problem. He'll even fork out for two nights in the hotel.

Bodyguards (one client had five), interpreters or personal chefs can also be provided. Plus a chauffeur, of course.

Even my dog Sparky was whisked off for walkies by one of Stuart's assistants, followed by a tasty snack of sausages.

Stuart says: "You get treated like a king or queen, it's glamour and luxury all the way - and you will leave looking a million dollars.

"I love it because the client is smiling all day and it's the best job in the world."

Stuart has a 40-minute consultation with all his clients to give them their dream hair. He adds: "We talk about exactly what they want, discussing everything from bone structure to their height to what they do for a living."

And if you bring a friend, they get a discount price of pounds 8,000 - bargain!

But can any hairdo really be worth pounds 20,000? I reckoned it was my journalistic duty to find out...

CAPTION(S):

Arrive with hair piled up and in dire need of a special do I'm offered a welcoming glass of bubbly, chilled to perfection Flat out on shampoo bed for relaxing head massage Finally, haircut time. Stuart gets to work as I grill him, in vain, for gossip The blow-dry and Stuart insists on doing it himself. I should think so... All done... and my hair looks grand. Maybe not 20 grand, but Sparky likes it. Honest.