2019 marks 60 years since the drug Thalidomide was introduced into the UK. Expectant mothers were given the drug as a cure for morning sickness and anxiety. The drug was not tested properly and was found to have caused severe birth defects in unborn children.

Many children were left to die shortly after birth, some sent off to homes out of the sight of a society that couldn't cope. Some families broke up as a result of the pressure put upon them.

60 Years later, despite suffering incredibly imiting disabilities, survivors of the tragedy have achieved the most amazing feats and enjoyed lives that they were told that they could never have. Now is the time to tell the survivor's stories, to learn what obstacles they have to overcome in the every day life that we take for granted, and be inspired by tremendous courage in the face of adversity.

Click to See Gary and Ricky on Granada Reports

Gary's Loch Ness swim is another example of how Thalidomide victims have shown amazing courage and determination over the years, despite limb limiting deformity. The money will help us celebrate 60 years of Thalidomide victim survival, by creating a feature length documentary that gives the victims a voice and celebrates their incredible contribution to society. The Loch Ness swim forms part of that documentary, it is not only courageous but a difficult and dangerous task. Help us celebrate 60 years of Thalidomide survival. Help us make sure the Thalidomide baby tragedy will never be forgotten.

The Thalidomide babies had a savage and life-limiting curse bestowed upon them in the late fifties through the mid-sixties, their cruel birth defects, not the result of genetics or reckless pregnancies, but handed to them by a drug that was not tested properly and rushed to market, a 'wonder drug’ given to their mothers to combat morning sickness. Sixty years later, the remaining babies are entering their retirement years without hearing an apology or receiving a penny of compensation from the company responsible for the drug’s manufacture. Some were born with partial limbs, some were born without limbs, an estimated 123,000 died at birth or shortly afterwards, but each survivor has had to overcome incredible and expensive obstacles in an attempt to live fulfilling lives.