In September 2019 I am going to do the Great North Run. I will be part of a group of 40 people aiming to raise £40k for https://www.alzheimersresearchuk.org/. We’ve all been recruited by my brilliant friend Marge Ainsley who turns 40 this year. 

It is fair to say that I’m not a natural runner. In school cross-country lessons, I would hide a chocolate bar in the waistband of my gym knickers, and would stop to eat it as soon as the teacher was out of sight. More recently, I’ve tried and failed three times to complete the Couch to 5k training programme. When I’ve told people that I’ve signed up to do the Great North Run, some people have actually just laughed out loud, until they’ve realised that I’m really serious about doing it! 

My teenage approach to PE hasn’t set me up very well to run a half marathon at the age of 40. At this moment in time, 13.1 miles / 21.1 km seems a very, very long way! It is genuinely going to be very difficult for me and I’m pretty nervous. Knowing that I’m doing this crazy thing to raise money for a really good cause is going to motivate me to start / keep training.


Most of us know someone whose life has been affected by dementia. I’ve seen the impact of this cruel, physical disease in in Marge’s family, and through my work. There are over 850,000 people diagnosed with dementia in the UK, and this is predicted to reach 2 million by 2051. Dementia is caused by complex brain diseases and is not an inevitable part of ageing. This little video helps explain a bit about it #ShareTheOrange.

Alzheimer’s Research UK receive no government funding for their research and are completely dependent on supporters to fund their research programme. I’m aiming to raise £1,000 towards our group target. £20 raised could pay for 1 hour of pioneering dementia research. £500 raised could cover the cost of a patient having sensitive brain scan as part of a research study, tracking the effectiveness of new drug treatments, improving diagnosis and better understanding how diseases like Alzheimer’s wreak their havoc in the brain.

Thanks for reading this, and a big thank you if you are able to sponsor me - it all adds up and is much appreciated!

You can find out more about the rest of the team and see how close we are to our big target here https://www.justgiving.com/companyteams/fortybyforty

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.