Upper Street Events’ head of events Matt Hodgins will walk from the organiser’s Gadget Show Live at The NEC to Excel London in a bid to raise money for charity.

The 300-mile walk will commence on 17 April, the day after Gadget Show Live finishes in Birmingham, and will take in a host of iconic locations along the Grand Union Canal as well as Watford.

Hodgins decided on the charity walk after discovering former cricketer Sir Ian Botham will be walking from Birmingham on 17 April to raise money and awareness of Leukemia research. Botham has conducted a series of these walks over the past 30 years. Since the first of these walks, the childhood survival rate has risen from 20 per cent in 1985 to 90 per cent today.

“This is a great charity which has made a real difference to a lot of people,” Hodgins said.

So far, Hodgins has raised 1,400 but hopes to secure more donations as he progresses on the walk. He plans on providing regular updates and photos while on his travel.

“The training so far, aside from the indoor miles at The NEC this week, has involved a 10-mile round trip from home to work every day for two months and a longer walk at weekends of up to 25 miles along the Thames, trying to avoid the riverside pubs in Putney and Barnes,” Hodgins told EN.

“My walk will involve legs of up to 35 miles so it will be covering longer distances than I have trained for and the effect of doing it the day after 10 days on onsite is the one big thing I haven’t trained for yet.”

Those who wish to sponsor Hodgin’s walk can get more details on his website: www.justgiving.com/gadget-show-walk

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