Portsmouth boy marching for King Arthur
and live on Freeview channel 276
Hamish Critchley, a 19-year-old from Southsea, is raising money for the brother of a friend. Arthur, who suffers from Mitochondrial Disease. Mitochondria are in almost every cell of our bodies and provide the energy needed for the cells to survive. They are like a battery, often described as the powerhouse of the cell. When there is a fault in the mitochondria, the cells cannot do their job and they stop performing and start to die. Mito affects patients in a number of ways and has restricted Arthur's development.
He is walking the country from sea to sea, from one end to the other, to march for King Arthur.
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Hide Ad‘I’m walking for Arthur and the Banks family because watching them as I have grown up and seen how they deal with everything with optimism and determination has always inspired me. I want to try to reciprocate what they have given me. In whatever way I can. I have chosen to raise for Lily’s fight against Mito,’ Says the 19-year-old. He started on the 1st of May by touching the sea at John O’Groats, averaging about 18 miles a day. The Banks family are so grateful and follow each step with great interest. They have recorded messages of support and they say it's a hell of an undertaking.
He had little idea what was ahead of him now that he was crossing the halfway point. It has been quite tricky so far; Hamish was under-prepared and didn’t realise it was pretty so far! “It just seemed like a good thing to do for the Lily Foundation”. He has experienced rain and sun, but the worst is bog. It was tough going to begin with but he has learnt about walking and camping as he goes along. He has got into a rhythm and has been shocked by the kindness of strangers. Everywhere he goes, people are friendly and helpful, he says. He is due to finish on July 7th and is looking forward to touching the sea at the end.
His big regret is that he is going to miss his first election. As a 19-year-old, he was looking forward to taking part. Now, he will have to do it by postal vote and watch how the country prepares as he walks by.
And why is he doing it the wrong way around? Just because you can, he says like a teenager.
Donations can be made on his Just Giving page here.