A priest shaving off his beard for a children’s charity has said he is a “bit surprised” by how much money he has already raised. 

Fr Eamonn Kelly of Raphoe, County Donegal has had a beard for decades; in fact, the last time he shaved it was the day before Donegal won the All-Ireland in 1992.

“I always had the notion, even as a young person, to grow a beard and then I went to work in Dublin and I was a barman for six or seven years and we used to have to wear a white shirt,” he told Moncrieff.

“Then when you look in the mirror and you see all these wee red dots of blood on the collar of the shirt, I was determined that whenever the opportunity arose I would grow a beard - which I did.”

Over the years, Fr Kelly has styled his beard in different ways but, at the moment, he describes it as “wild and rugged” - something his family do not approve of.

“They love it when it’s neat and tidy but I have nine sisters and they’re not very fond of it when it gets a bit rough and ragged,” he said.

“Now… there’s a bit of grey in it too, so they’re always on to me about keeping it tidy.”

The main reason he has decided to shave it off is to raise money for the Mary's Meals charity - although he admits his sisters giving him “a bit of a hard time this last wee while” was also a factor.

“Over the years, we’ve done anything we could to try and support it [Mary's Meals],” he said.

“It’s all about feeding the weans and trying to keep them in school as long as you can.”

Donations can be made on Fr Kelly’s GoFundMe page; so far, he has raised €1,162 and if €4,000 is raised he has promised to shave his head as well.

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