FANCY getting up at 5am to slide 500 feet down a rope from the top of Blackpool Tower?

Well that's what housewife Julie Cocker will do to raise funds for the Anthony Nolan Bone Marrow Trust.

And the madcap mum-of-two has already completed a 2,000-feet parachute jump and a 300-feet abseil for the charity, despite being terrified of heights.

It will be the first time the rope slide has been done for charity. Presenters from BBC's Record Breakers did the stunt a few years ago. Julie, from Mendip Road, Clayton-le-Woods, said: "I used to feel sick on a multi-storey car park so I had to get over my fear of heights. I found the abseil very daunting.

"The Trust means a lot to me. A friend of mine lost her nine-year-old child to the illness, partly because a donor wasn't available." However, Julie needs local businesses and individuals to help her with costs for the stunt which takes place next July. If you can sponsor her telephone (01772) 460756.

You can get involved with Julie's events in a more gentle way - by taking part in a ten-mile Turkey Walk 'to walk off that Christmas dinner' on December 29 from the Cotty Brook pub on Lea Road, Preston.

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