I am swimming across the English Channel as part of a Relay Race  with 11 other people, all from the licensing/toys/entertainment industry.

In May 2013 my older sister took her own life having suffered from postnatal psychosis, leaving behind her 2 yr old son and 13 yr
old daughter. Tragically this was history repeating itself as my own mother had suffered the same condition and sadly took her own life when I was 5. As many of us have experienced, the licensing industry is an extended family for lots of us and during the challenging times in 2013 The Light Fund kindly made a donation to a trust fund I had set up to support my nephew and niece as they grew up. In 2013 I made the conscious decision to use both my time and my connections to raise funds to support key charities and provide myself with
challenges that will push myself both mentally and physically. In September of 2013 I completed (just) my first Olympic Triathlon to raise funds for the mental health charity ‘Mind’. Since then I have managed over six triathlons, raising funds for many different charities, and also took part in both the London to Utrecht and Bristol to Dublin cycle challenges for The Light Fund, as well as successfully completing the ‘5 Peaks Challenge’ in Sept 2019 with colleagues on-behalf of raising essential funds for the MTV Staying Alive Foundation. A casual comment over a pub lunch with Simon Gresswell, during the brief spell in summer 2020 when we could visit
pubs, finds me now committing to swim the English Channel with other slightly crazy folk from the industry! The furthest I have swum in one go is when competing in the various triathlons (1 mile) so the thought of swimming several miles in the English Channel with the swell, jellyfish and through the world’s busiest shipping lane - in just my Speedos - is quite a daunting prospect! The past year has hit us all in various different ways, however the charity sector and its ability to raise funds has been hit particularly hard and the thought of The Light Fund not having sufficient funds to continue it’s great work and
supporting the wide array of charities and individuals it does provides me and the rest of the team foolish enough to take on this epic challenge all the motivation we need to get across the channel and set foot on French soil.

The English Channel as the crow flies is 21 miles across at it's narrowest point, however, with at least three and probably four tidal shifts to contend with we are looking at a swim of circa. 40 miles (and possibly up to the record to date of 65 miles by Jackie Corbel in 28 hours 44 minutes) in an "S"-shaped swim. Initially we will be pulled up towards the Netherlands and then as the tide turns we will be flung back down again towards Spain. It will then be back towards Dutch shores with the next tidal shift before hopefully a final tidal swing which will see us land safely - all being well - somewhere on the French coastline. 

The wind and weather can also be challenging as weather conditions over the Channel can change very quickly and often don't match the
forecasts. Tidal currents on the French coast are brutal and many swimmers within 500 metres of reaching land have failed in their stoical attempt. To add further sobriety if any were needed, 10 swimmers have unfortunately lost their lives trying to swim across this notoriously unpredictable stretch of water.

We will each swim for one hour and repeat in rotational order until we
reach France. Being on a small boat for 5 hours between swims chugging along at a swimmer's pace and remaining in one piece may be more of a challenge than the actual swim. The slower the aggregate swim time, the more painful and precarious the journey on the boat. Thanks goodness for Stugeron and Kwells!

We will follow English Channel swimming rules and wear only one textile swim suit (not extending below the knee), one latex
swim hat and one pair of swimming goggles................there will be no
neoprene in sight! We must not touch the boat nor indeed one another during each one hour swim stint and once we start we must follow the same sequential order of swimmer rotation. Not to do so - in part or in whole for whatever reason including sea sickness  - will mean instant disqualification. Regardless of curve balls, the show MUST go on!

Including relay swims, more people have climbed Mount Everest
than have swum the English Channel - considered the global Holy Grail of open water swims.