A good friend of mine I've known since childhood often jokes that he has no idea what I do for a living, so with that mystery in mind, a brief explanation as to who Alan Dewhurst was to me.

Everyone knew Alan to be a truly brilliant person. His smile and laughter revealed a mischievousness woven through his precise intellect and thoughtfulness that made him all the more unique. He was something of an insightful mentor to me, an industrious collaborator, and generous friend - certainly one of my very closest in the last few years.

Alan passed away from a brain tumour around a year after his diagnosis and several different treatments. Unfortunately the type of cancer, glioblastoma, is perhaps the most complex to manage. Only 1% of national spend on cancer research has been dedicated to this disease, so donations here really can have an impact.

With some of Alan's friends, I will be walking 100km fairly continuously (with maybe a nap on a hillside, avoiding the wild big cats that I'm convinced roam free since the haphazard introduction of the Dangerous Wild Animals Act in 1976) to raise money for charity. Why a walk? I'm not sure, but the ritual of this - and the prep for it - already feels exciting... We'll see if we feel similarly after 73km or so.

I've personally covered the fees for the event itself, so not a penny of your donations go to funding a walking holiday in the Peak District - all money given here goes entirely to the charity!

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We’re doing the 100km continuous Peak District challenge to raise a bit of cash towards fixing this bloody glioblastoma business - a bastard of a disease if ever there was.

Apparently some people run it, which is clearly insane. We reckon we can walk it in 30-35 hours, including some time for a pint, a poo and foot/ankle/knee/hip surgery - but little or no sleep.

We’re paying our own way so everything raised goes to Brain Tumour Research in hopes that one day soon we can say, oi, glioblastoma, feck off you twat - and that off it fecks.