Stars Pound The Pavement In London Marathon

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 06:51:45 -0000

35,000 people set off through the English rain yesterday in the third biggest London Marathon ever held. And a handful of celebrities slipped on their running shoes, polished off their pedometers, and sweated their way along the 26 mile course for charity.

Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay managed to compete in his ninth marathon with very little of his trademark bad language, and completed the race in just under three hours.

“It doesn’t get any easier,” said the Michelin-star winner, who was raising money for Spina Bifida research. “There were thousands who came out – they were fantastic.”

Actress Amanda Holden – whose show, Britain’s Got Talent, has just returned to TV – also braved the blisters for a good cause. The 37-year-old ran the event to raise money for the Born Free Foundation, of which she is patron. She trained for six months for the marathon, during which she set up a website for people to follow her training and sponsor her effort. She raised over $12,000 from sponsors, including pledges from Simon Cowell ($2,000) and Piers Morgan ($2,002).

Other celebrities puffing their way through the streets of London included Ronan Keating and former Big Brother winner Kate Lawler, who raised thousands for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust.

Stars Gather For Cystic Fibrosis Benefit

Mon, 04 Feb 2008 11:15:01 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

A cold London night was made a little warmer on Thursday, when a host of stars came out to raise money for sufferers of a chronic genetic disease.

The “Liv” Gala and Auction was held on January 31, with 420 guests paying up to $2,500 to attend the black tie event. The evening, which included performances by British comedians David Walliams, Matt Lucas, and Jimmy Carr, rasied over $4 million, with proceeds to be split between the Cystic Fibrosis Trust in England and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in America.

Last minute schedule changes by soccer club Barcelona FC meant that host Thierry Henry was unable to attend, but he thrilled the audience by appearing via live video when his match finished. However, English International players Peter Crouch and John Terry did attend, and they were joined by singer Natalie Imbruglia, photographer Sam Taylor-Wood, and British television hosts Trinny Woodall and Davina McCall. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, whose youngest son suffers from cystic fibrosis, also attended the gala.

But the evening’s biggest applause was reserved for Sir Elton John, who received a standing ovation for his performance.

Cystic Fibrosis is one of the world’s most common life-threatening diseases that can be inherited from parents, with over 70,000 sufferers around the globe. It is a debilitating condition that affects internal organs, especially the lungs and digestive system, by clogging them with thick and sticky mucus. Sufferers experience difficulties in breathing and digesting food, and the average life expectancy is only 31 years. Money raised from the gala will be used to provide care for sufferers and provide life saving medicines.

Look To The Stars News: Cystic Fibrosis Trust

Stars Pound The Pavement In London Marathon

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Stars Gather For Cystic Fibrosis Benefit

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