Many of you know Sophie: yoga teacher, fellow orangutan and Taylor Swift/Harry Styles obsessive, mum to the beautiful Lily and Mikey and one of my very best friends.

Probably fewer of you know that Sophie’s dad, Thomas, recently passed away after battling leukaemia for 5 years. Thomas’s warm smile, generosity, quirky hobbies (bonsai trees will always make me think of him), and devotion to his family make him the kind of dad everyone wishes they had. And throughout this horrendous time, Thomas remained a pillar of strength, kindness, and love.

In April, I’ll be running the London Marathon to raise money for Anthony Nolan, a charity that provides vital support to leukaemia patients like Thomas. They fund life-saving research, provide specialist nurses, and offer hope to countless families affected by leukaemia by matching patients with lifesaving stem cell donors.

I got my London Marathon place in the ballot, so technically I didn't need to raise any money for charity. But as a fundraiser of ten years, and thanks to a pesky injury that meant I couldn't do the Royal Parks in October, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to try and raise as much money as possible, honour Thomas, and show the whole Johnson family some love.

So, the running… I’ve started from scratch again and I have no doubt the training will be hard, but I know I can do it. Thinking of Soph, Thomas, Annie, Lily and the rest of the gang is all the motivation I need.

In the meantime, I would absolutely love it if you would consider helping me raise money to hit my fundraising target. Every penny goes straight to Anthony Nolan where it makes such a difference.

Thank you for reading, and for your support. Let’s show my girl how loved she is 💜