Vernon Kay returns home a hero after raising over £4m for Children in Need with ultra marathon challenge
Vernon Kay has been welcomed back to his hometown of Bolton as a hero after completing his incredible ultra-marathon challenge and raising over £4 million for Children in Need. Amazing.
Completing the fourth and final day of his endurance challenge, in which he set himself the task of running and walking over 100 miles on behalf of the BBC and Children in Need this year, Kay concluded his epic journey at Bolton Wanderers’ Toughsheet Stadium on Friday morning.
Met by a live broadcast of Zoe Ball’s Breakfast Show on BBC Radio Two and hundreds of locals greeting him with cheers and rapturous applause, the presenter didn’t just surpass his century of kilometres but went on to polish off a whopping 116 miles in total for good measure.
The 49-year-old started off his final day by leaving Old Trafford at 7am before heading through Salford, past Swinton, the likes of Linnyshaw and Little Hulton, before receiving his well-deserved grand reception in Bolton.
Having traipsed all the way from Leicester, through to Derbyshire and finally ending up back in Greater Manchester, supporters from all over lined the streets across various sections of his final leg.
Passing through the likes of Marple, Stockport and Heaton Moor on Thursday evening as he wrapped up his third day of trekking his way back home, Kay kept going day and night, through wind and rain, before making his way back to the iconic football stadium where an estimated 400 people were in attendance.
With kids from local schools like St Joseph’s High, his former secondary in Horwich, coming out in force to cheer him on for his final stretch, his fundraising total just kept on climbing.
Just before his BBC colleague and friend Zoe told him just how much he’d made, he shared an emotional moment with his parents, who had given him a heartwarming pep talk over the phone earlier in the week and were right there waiting for him in the stands.
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As of the moment he crossed the finish line, Vernon’s final tally sat at £4,014,362: a truly incredible amount that will make a huge difference to the 2023 Children in Need campaign.
Well in Vernon, lad, unreal effort. Now go have a sit-down, grab yourself a brew and have the kip of a lifetime — you deserve it.
More importantly, you can still donate to this ever-crucial cause HERE to hopefully help boost that number even more.
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Featured Images — BBC Children in Need