Beating Bowel Cancer Merges With Bowel Cancer UK

Some very exciting news today - Beating Bowel Cancer and Bowel Cancer UK are joining together to become the UK's leading bowel cancer charity. Read the full statement here.

After my Mum had the operation to remove the tumour from her bowel in September 2012, I began my fundraising for Beating Bowel Cancer. Five years down the line, Mum is sadly no longer with us, but the fundraising continues stronger than ever. The Lives & Times charity book that I published in 2015 has raised over £3400, and the new book will hopefully be out towards the end of 2018. Over the years I have made connections with Bowel Cancer UK, in particular I have always been grateful for the support from their Chief Executive, Deborah Alsina MBE, so I am looking forward to working with her.

The purpose of the new organisation is bold and clear. "We are determined to save lives, improve the quality of life and support all those affected by bowel cancer in the UK. We are tremendously excited about the future and our pledge is bold, stretching and inspiring. Within ten years we will transform survival rates, from only one in every two people surviving bowel cancer over five years, to three out of four people surviving. There will be better treatment and care including information and support for every patient and screening will be optimal, leading to more cancers being detected early or prevented leading to fewer emergency presentations."

This will be achieved through:

• Enabling and supporting research
• Providing support and information for patients and their families each step of the way
• Transforming awareness and understanding of the disease
• Campaigning for early diagnosis and best treatment and care for all

So some big and exciting changes coming up, and it's business as usual from me. Hoping to raise more funds with the items I am selling on my www.bowelcancerfundraising.co.uk website, and raising awareness about bowel cancer.

Happy Christmas From Lives & Times - A Bowel Cancer Charity Book

A very Happy Christmas to everyone, and a massive thanks to everyone who has supported the Lives & Times fundraising book so far, helping to raise over £3400 for Beating Bowel Cancer. It's a lovely book featuring photos of so many wonderful people - some famous, and some not so famous affected by bowel cancer. It would make a lovely Christmas gift, and it's available from my www.bowelcancerfundraising.co.uk website. Please also watch and share the festive video.

Bowel cancer is the second highest cancer killer in the UK claiming 16,000 lives each year, but it is also very treatable if detected early. Much more needs to be done, both in raising awareness about bowel cancer, and improving early detection rates. If everything goes to plan, the new book, The Record, will be out towards the end of 2018.

Steve 'Smiley' Barnard Features in Two Chapters of Bowel Cancer Charity Book

I am pretty sure that Steve 'Smiley' Barnard is the only person to feature in two chapters of Lives & Times, and he achieves this without actually having a chapter dedicated to himself. This has been been rectified for the next book, The Record, hopefully due out in 2018, as I went to meet him earlier this year at his Sunshine Recording Studios in Fleet. We chatted for over an hour, and he couldn't have been nicer, so I left with plenty of good stuff to write about.

When we met Smiley was in the early stages of recording his 5th solo album, Smiley's Friends In The Afterglow, which is scheduled for released early in 2018. His previous four albums have all be fantastic, and I am sure this will not disappoint. Why can't other artists take a leaf out of Smiley's book, and release an album every year, just like bands did in the good old days...

Smiley plays drums for The Alarm, and back in 2014 I went to Abbey Road to take part in The Scriptures project, which was the recording of the world's longest song. The full band took part in this session and apart from getting my photo of Mike Peters for the book I was able to get a few great photos including the above shot of the band doing a publicity shot with Andy Labrow. It was a fantastic day, and made for a fascinating chapter in the book.

I also got to take some photos of Smiley in action when he was drumming with From The Jam, when I was given a photo pass to photograph them at their gig at SUB89 in Reading in November 2014. I was able to spend the whole set in the pit, so I got the best seat in the house as well as blowing my ear drums!

The Lives & Times fundraising book along with the screen prints and mugs has now raised over £3400 for the Beating Bowel Cancer charity. The book can be bought from my own www.bowelcancerfundraising.co.uk website. My Mum passed away in August 2016 after a four year brave and dignified battle fought with bowel cancer. As well as raising funds for the charity the book is helping to raise awareness about this awful disease. Bowel cancer is the second highest cancer killer in the UK, but if detected early it is one of the most treatable ones in over 90% of cases.