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USP Murdock is a one-stop shop for the discerning dandy. The emphasis, as suggested by Murdock's cut-throat razor logo, is on the traditional wet shave but you could spend hours there, leaving smooth-faced with a new haircut, a manicure and polished shoes. You can also pick up some German underwear, an American grosgrain belt, a book for the tube ride home and first-edition grooming products, then carry them away in your new English leather bag.

EXPERIENCE I went for the traditional wet shave and, despite knowing that Sweeney Todd is the fictional protaganist of a Victorian Penny Dreadful opera, it's difficult not to think of him and wince as the cold steel of the cut-throat razor caresses my throat. This, however, is not 19th- century Fleet Street, but Hoxton 2006. The only pie emporium in the vicinity is the trendy Square Pie and I can't see them using me as filling. Added to which, my stylist Juri has already softened me up with a beer, a hot towel soaked in natural oils and much friendly patter, as his steady hand harvests my stubble. The reassuring scrape of steel on lavender lather on skin soon becomes a something of a lullaby as relaxation seeps through me.

AMBIENCE Murdock has only been here six months but has a feeling of heritage. The elegant wallpaper, strip-lit mirrors and red leather barber chairs with their iron footplates take you back to an era where men could regularly spare an hour for a shave.

IN CROWD Hoxtonites who eschew the eponymous fin, in favour of a self-assured combination of traditional and contemporary male aesthetics.

WALLET WATCH The traditional wet shave costs £25.50, as does a shampoo and haircut with head massage. The more indulgent Santa Maria Novella Wet Shave comes in at £42.50, while you can get your beard or moustache trimmed for under a tenner. The two-hour full service (shampoo, haircut, wet shave, manicure and shoe polish) is £60. Very young men about town (under 12) can get their precocious locks cut for £16.

NEED TO KNOW Murdock Ltd, 340 Old St, London EC1V 9DS (020 7729 2288; www.murdocklondon.com)

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