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Roger's colleagues step up after injury ends BBC presenter's running challenge

Roger JohnsonNorth West Tonight
BBC BBC North West Tonight presenter Roger Johnson, who is wearing a suit, shirt and tie, is smiling at the camera in the studio. BBC
Roger Johnson called on his colleagues to unite for Children in Need

I'm not much of a runner. I never have been.

But I have been getting my trainers on most mornings for the past 18 months, simply to stay fit and lose weight.

So, I wasn't too daunted when I was challenged to run 26.2 miles (41km) over the space of two weeks for this year's BBC Children in Need appeal.

Lots of people do a marathon in one go, so how hard could it be?

Well, perhaps I shouldn't have been so conceited.

Four weeks ago, a long-standing foot problem flared up.

I iced it. I raised it. The doctor gave me pills. I even had an X-ray.

But it stubbornly refused to get better.

A composite image of Angela, Anna, Annie and Bob, who all stepped up to help Roger complete his Children in Need challenge.
It was a team effort to complete the Children in Need challenge

Members of Lostock Athletics Club had kindly offered to run the first few miles with me, and it was arranged for a drizzly Tuesday morning in Blackrod, near Horwich.

I arrived, hobbling, and had to watch bemused as they jogged off into the distance without me.

Ian Burns, who is in his late 60s, offered some words of wisdom.

"We are a bit stubborn and think we're not really hurt when we really are," he said.

"It can take me weeks to get over a small injury, whereas 10 years ago, I would have been a couple of days."

Either way, I hoped I would soon be fit to start the challenge.

I waited and waited. It felt as though I was taking painkillers like sweets (while never exceeding the recommended dose, of course).

But by the end of October, still unable to manage more than a hobble, I needed a Plan B.

And that was when, as I looked around the BBC North West newsroom, I realised salvation could be close at hand.

Could a few colleagues join forces to run the miles on my behalf?

I sent an email asking for help.

A composite image of Ian, Mat, Issy, Jack and Jade, who all stepped up to help Roger complete his Children in Need challenge.
More than 30 people ran more 160 miles between them

The essence of Children in Need, since it started in 1980, has been about strangers coming together to raise money to help others.

Over the decades, I've met so many fundraisers and those they help.

I've heard stories which have made me laugh and cry.

I will always remember an elderly lady in Bootle, Merseyside, who had just collected her pension and insisted on putting £20 in a collection bucket as we walked down the north west coast.

And Ella, supported by a bereavement charity on the Isle of Man, after her brother died.

There are countless others.

A composite image of Kelly, Mat, Mike and Molly, who all stepped up to help Roger complete his Children in Need challenge.
Colleagues put their best foot forward to complete the challenge

Generosity runs through it all - money, of course, but also generosity of time and spirit.

So maybe I shouldn't have been surprised when my colleagues started replying to my email.

In the end, more than 30 ran more 160 miles between them in parks, on paths, up and down hills, over bridges and along the lanes of Cheshire, Lancashire, Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Cumbria.

That figure was far more than my target, but it stands for the power of the collective uniting for a common cause.

It's what Children in Need is all about.

But it's also taught me another lesson - if I'm asked again to do something for the cause next year, I will promise to be a little less complacent.

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