Hair transplantIreland4 min read
Brian McFadden's hair transplant: “People should not be embarrassed”
In February 2018 former Westlife singer Brian McFadden posted a video and photos of his hair transplant on Instagram and wrote about it on Twitter. He did not hide the operating gown or the reason he went ahead. Here is what he said, where it was reported and what the procedure involves for men weighing it up now.
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Medically reviewed by Ellina V. Goncharova, dermatovenereologist, trichologist, surgeon. Review date: .
The main points in 30 seconds
- In February 2018, as the Irish Mirror reported, Brian McFadden shared a video and photos of his hair transplant on Instagram.
- He said his thinning hairline made him self-conscious, and that people should not be embarrassed about getting their hair done.
- A hair transplant is done under local anaesthesia, and you go home the same day.
- Transplanted hairs shed in weeks 2–4, new hair comes through at months 3–4, and the final result comes at 12–18 months.
- At City Medical Centre an FUE transplant costs $2,200, and the first consultation is free.
Key facts about the procedure
- Stay in clinicSame day
- Final result12–18 months
- AnaesthesiaLocal
- Price
$2,700from $2,200
Profile
Brian McFadden
- Country
- Ireland
- Who
- Singer and TV presenter
- Quote source
- Irish Mirror, 4 February 2018
Same (his tweet). He also wrote on Instagram that his hairline was 'really making me self conscious and uncomfortable so I decided to do something about it'.
What did Brian McFadden say about his hair transplant?
The Irish Mirror quoted his Instagram caption: “The last few years my hair line has been thinning and receding due to my life style and the general stresses we go through in life. It’s been really making me self conscious and uncomfortable so I decided to do something about it.”
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WhatsAppIn the video, dressed in a surgical gown, he told the camera: “I feel good. I’m looking forward to having my old hairline back again because it is going a little thin.” On Twitter he added that “people should not be embarrassed about getting your hair done. It’s just moving hair from the back of your head to the front.”
Those posts are what this article relies on. He did not describe the technique or the number of grafts in them, so we do not guess. The medical sections below describe hair transplants in general.
Why his openness struck a chord
McFadden was 37 and had spent most of his adult life in front of cameras. Instead of letting fans spot a new hairline and wonder, he showed the process himself and gave a plain reason: he felt self-conscious. The Irish Mirror noted that many people online thanked him for being candid. Readers in South Africa who are weighing the same decision can learn how the procedure works through this guide to a hair transplant in Cape Town.
More on this topic: Hair Transplant, Hair Transplant for Women, FUE Hair Transplant, FUE & DHI Hair Transplant in Singapore, FUE & DHI Hair Transplant in Málaga.
His one-line summary — moving hair from the back of the head to the front — is also a fair description of the principle. The donor area at the back of the head holds hair that is resistant to the genetic process behind most male pattern hair loss. The transplant relocates it; it does not create new hair out of nothing, and native hair elsewhere can still thin later.
Hair transplant abroad: choose a city and clinic
Prices, the clinic and a free online consultation for each city:
How the procedure works today
A hair transplant is a one-day outpatient operation under local anaesthesia. Grafts are taken from the back of the head and temples and implanted along the hairline, temples or crown. Three variants are in common use:
- FUE: grafts extracted one at a time, then placed in small channels, with no incisions or stitches;
- DHI: grafts implanted straight into the skin with a Choi implanter pen;
- Combined: FUE extraction with DHI implantation.
FUE
- Channels made in advance
- Yes
- Stitches
- None
- Anaesthesia
- Local
- Go home
- Same day
- City Medical Centre price
- $2,200
DHI
- Channels made in advance
- No
- Stitches
- None
- Anaesthesia
- Local
- Go home
- Same day
- City Medical Centre price
- $2,500
DHI+FUE
- Channels made in advance
- No
- Stitches
- None
- Anaesthesia
- Local
- Go home
- Same day
- City Medical Centre price
- $2,700
Is it right for you?
A receding or thinning hairline like the one McFadden described is one of the most common reasons to consider surgery. Others include thinning temples, a high hairline, low density, diffuse alopecia, and hair loss after trauma, burns, illness or hormonal disorders.
What decides suitability is the donor area and the pattern of loss, which the doctor assesses at the consultation, free of charge, together with a graft count.
Contraindications include patchy (focal) alopecia, age under 18, trichotillomania, body dysmorphic disorder, cancer, epilepsy, severe heart disease, diabetes mellitus, a pacemaker, HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B/C, a history of pulmonary embolism and intolerance to anaesthetics. Once a date is booked, the clinic sends the list of tests and preparation instructions.
What recovery looks like
For about ten days the scalp heals and crusts fall away. Between weeks two and four the transplanted hairs shed, which is normal. Growth begins at three to four months, the new density becomes visible at six to nine months, and the final result is assessed at 12–18 months. People who share early photos, as McFadden did, are usually showing the very start of that journey.
Hair transplant timeline
- Day 0Local anaesthesia, graft harvesting and implantation; home the same day.
- Days 1–10Healing: crusts form and fall off, follow the care plan.
- Weeks 2–4Shedding of the transplanted hairs, which is expected.
- Months 3–4New hair starts to come through.
- Months 6–9Noticeable improvement in density.
- Months 12–18Final result.
Hair transplant at City Medical Centre
City Medical Centre carries out FUE, DHI and combined transplants for patients from Ireland and other countries. The first consultation is free and can take place online. Prices: FUE $2,200, DHI $2,500, combined $2,700 — quoted at the consultation and fixed in the contract.
The price includes dressings, healing check-ups, instructions on washing, sleeping and headwear, a personal coordinator, photo progress tracking and follow-up appointments at 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months; the clinic gives a lifetime guarantee of hair growth. See the hair transplant page for details.
City Medical Centre has no connection with Brian McFadden or his treatment. His posts are referenced only because he chose to talk about the procedure publicly.
Hair transplant prices in this article are the current offer, valid until 30 November 2026. Regular prices: FUE $2,700, DHI $2,900, combined method $2,900. The price that applies to you is confirmed at the consultation.
Frequently asked questions
When did Brian McFadden have his hair transplant?
He shared the video and photos in February 2018, when he was 37.
Why did Brian McFadden get a hair transplant?
He said his hairline had been thinning and receding and that it made him self-conscious and uncomfortable, so he decided to do something about it.
Which technique did he have?
He did not name the technique in the posts we quote, so we do not speculate. FUE, DHI and a combination of both are the main methods today.
Will transplanted hair fall out again?
The hair shafts usually shed in the first weeks, but the follicles stay and regrow. Hair from the donor area is resistant to genetic loss and normally keeps growing long term.
How much does a transplant cost at City Medical Centre?
FUE is $2,200, DHI $2,500 and combined $2,700. The price is confirmed after the free consultation and written into the contract.
Sources
What the article says about the celebrity is based only on these public statements.
- Irish Mirror, 4 February 2018
Medical background and further reading
General information about the procedure from health authorities and medical societies. It is not advice for any individual patient.
- PubMed / NCBI — Follicular Unit Extraction for Hair Transplantation: An Update (Actas Dermosifiliogr, 2017)
- PubMed / NCBI — Donor site healing in follicular unit extraction hair transplantation (Cell Mol Biol, 2025)
- International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery — Hair loss treatments and solutions
How we prepare and review medical content · Medical disclaimer
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Message a coordinator on Telegram: we reply right in the chat, and you can send photos and questions there too.
- The first consultation is free, online consultations are available
- The doctor names the cost after the assessment, and it is fixed in the contract
- A personal coordinator guides you from the first message to recovery
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