Published in Touching Lives November 2006

Davina McCall worked her magic on the crowds again this year at the second Davina’s Day Out sponsored walk around Portsmouth Harbour. Despite unseasonably bad weather, hundreds of people turned out to take part on Sunday 9th July, and the day looks set to have raised over £30,000 for our Touching Tiny Lives Campaign.

Event sponsor VT Shipbuilding showed their dedication to the cause with more than 30 employees taking part. Among them was Steve Kelsall, who took to the stage with his family to share his experiences of premature birth with Davina and the crowd. His eldest daughter, Olivia, was born three months early, weighing only 2lbs 4oz. Thankfully she is now a healthy and energetic five-year-old.

We are so fortunate to have Davina’s support, particularly as the walk took place during her busy “Big Brother” season. Even the fact that she was seven months pregnant couldn’t stop her completing the five-and-a-half-mile route, to the delight of the other walkers. Addressing the crowd at the end of the walk Davina commented on how much she loves the event and all the great work achieved by Action Medical Research. She hopes to support us again in 2007.