I'm a double cancer survivor, cyclist and walker who does various challenges for different charities, mainly cancer-related.

In 2016 I climbed every single 'Birkett' in the Lake District - all 542 fells over 1,000' within the National Park, including all 214 Wainwrights. I've also done a three-week cycle tour of Tasmania in February 2015 and amongst other things, I've cycled from Land's End to John o'Groats (2003), Rotterdam to Lemvig (Denmark) (2005), walked the Pennine Way (2008) completed (my first) ascent of all 214 'Wainwrights' in the Lake District in only 55 days (2009), cycled 4,500 miles around the coast of Great Britain (2011), cycled all 42 of the accessible Western Isles of Scotland in under a month (2012), twice abseiled 230 ft from the top of The Big One in Blackpool, cycled the WWI Western Front from London to Compiegne via Ypres and Arras (2014), cycled 750 miles in the Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton (2014), done a bit of sky-diving and cycled Australia's Great Ocean Road - just before lockdown in 2020.

Altogether I've raised over £120,000 for my charities including The Christie, Cancer Research UK, the Rosemere Cancer Foundation, and ABF (The Soldiers' Charity) and I was mightily chuffed to receive the British Empire Medal in the 2014 New Year's Honours List.

I'm a Rotarian and give illustrated talks about my adventures in exchange for a donation to charity, so if you're looking for a speaker leave me a message. I am also Event Organiser for the Ribble Valley Ride Cycle Sportive, to be held this year on Sunday 5 September 2021 - more details at www.ribblevalleyride.org

You can also follow me on Twitter - @CancerBikeMan and on Facebook - just search for Bill Honeywell

Cancer Research UK is the world's leading charity dedicated to beating cancer through research, whilst The Rosemere does fantastic work for patients in Lancashire and South Cumbria.

Friday 1 July 2011

Thursday Night and Friday Morning…



















Our friends Andrew and Merida Drysdale had arranged an evening out at the Brill Plaice, a friendly restaurant in the middle of Stoke Fleming.  They had also invited along Merida’s cousin Geoffrey Newman, his wife Mary, together with their daughter El and boyfriend Simon Curtis.

Last year Simon rode between FIVE and SIX thousand miles, visiting all the lighthouses in Britain, to raise awareness for Ovarian Cancer – so I certainly had something to talk to him about!  You can find his excellent web site at http://www.cyclethelights.co.uk.  Geoffrey and Mary met many years ago while supporting one of Ranulph Fiennes’s Arctic expeditions.

Andrew has spent a life in the insurance industry before his retirement, and Merida has been very much involved in the National Trust for Scotland. Then there was me, Val, Alan, and my brother John, cruise travel writer and former managing editor of the Daily Mirror.

So as you can imagine the conversation hardly stopped, and was constantly enlivened by Andrew’s stories of life which had us holding our sides, especially the story of how he dealt with the annoying man with the mobile phone on the train many years ago.  He says he is going to write a book entitled…  No, I’d better not make the title public – it’s so good someone might pinch it!

I’m afraid I also made a pig of myself by eating lots and lots of mashed potato with my duck, and then three big scoops of ice cream.



















At Blackpool Sands this morning - Geoffrey Newman, me, Val, Merida Drysdale, Alan Breckell, John Honeywell

Then this morning we followed on with a visit to the Venus Café at Blackpool Sands where we were treated to their full English breakfast in the most superb surroundings.  Geoffrey and Merida came with us, but Simon and El had to work, whilst Andrew had to leave early for London.  It was a wrench to leave and set off cycling again, even though it was to be a short day.  Which I’ll tell you about shortly.

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