“My handstand challenge for best mate whose life was turned upside down.”

When illness turned Ellis Healy’s life upside down, his best mate Harry turned upside down too - by committing to doing a handstand every day in 2026 to raise money for charity.

Harry Clesham, who lives in southwest London, has already raised over £2,000 for The Brain Tumour Charity via social media and his fundraising page – and his technique has improved to the stage where he can walk a few steps on his hands too.

He posts daily videos of his activities on Instagram, and carries out his feats in locations as varied as pubs, pavements, gyms, holiday hotspots and hotel rooms.

Harry and Ellis first met when they were students at university in Leicester in 2011. They lived in the same halls of residence, hung out together during Freshers’ Week and both joined the rugby team.

Ellis, 33, who had intended to become a butcher like his dad, then worked in London for a year, as did Harry. They sat their finals in Leicester and then both moved back to London to work at tech companies. Harry was also a groomsman and the Master of Ceremonies when Ellis married his wife Hannah in 2024.

But Ellis has had health struggles since he was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease when he was 11. Treatment included immunosuppressant medication which stopped working when he was 27.

While waiting to have scheduled keyhole surgery, he was rushed to hospital with a blockage in his intestine. This was found to be tumour, and to his shock, he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Fortunately, it had been caught early and he was treated with six rounds of R-CHOP chemotherapy – a combination of four drugs and a steroid.

That's where his good fortune ended. A PET scan to check he had the all-clear found no uptake of the contrast dye on the right side of his brain. A follow up scan identified a brain tumour.

Ellis told That's Health: “I was due to have keyhole surgery to treat my Crohn’s but ended up having four lots of surgery and two bouts of sepsis which triggered a cardiac arrest.

“I was discharged with a wearable defibrillator vest and was one of the first patients in the UK to use one. I had to wear it for 24 hours a day, including at work and at the gym which was awkward.”

Once his infection had gone, brain tumour treatment was due to start. But first he needed to have a permanent defibrillator implanted. Then, last March, Ellis had three seizures back-to-back.

Ellis continued: “I had my first seizure while I was asleep. It woke my wife who called an ambulance which arrived within 10 minutes. They gave me a sedative which stopped the seizure, but I had another one a short while later and another one in the ambulance.”

Six months after the seizures and the ICD Implant, Ellis had an awake craniotomy to remove a grade 2 to 3 astrocytoma, from which he’s now recuperating.

Throughout everything, Harry has supported Ellis as best he can – taking the mickey out of his fashion sense when he was wearing the defibrillator vest, and when he was well enough, going camping on the Dorset coast. That’s when the idea to raise awareness and funds came about.

Harry said: “Ellis has been an exceptional friend and we’ve been close pals ever since we met. His strength, humour and resilience throughout have been nothing short of inspiring - I truly haven’t met anyone like him. He’s one of a kind.

“The challenge was born after Ellis and I spent two days walking together along the Jurassic Coast. We talked about what he was going through, how he was feeling and what I could do to support him in a meaningful way. During those conversations, Ellis said that if I were to raise money for a cause, he would want it to be for The Brain Tumour Charity.”

Ellis added: “I mentioned The Brain Tumour Charity because their website and leaflets provide all the information you need to know - not just about living with the illness but also how to prepare for what’s next and how to overcome some of the challenges you’re going to face.

“It's just a really good single point of reference so I’ve used it a lot and it’s been very helpful for my family to understand it as well, in their own time.”

You can support Harry’s fundraising efforts here: https://www.justgiving.com/page/officialhandstandharry – and watch his daily handstand videos on Instagram @officialhandstandharry.

Harry said: “The rule is simple: no matter what the day brings, there is always time to show up for this cause. This challenge is about more than handstands. It is about standing alongside a friend as he recovers from brain tumour surgery, raising awareness of the impact brain tumours have on individuals and their families, and supporting the research, care and services provided by The Brain Tumour Charity. 

"I will keep going, one day, one handstand and one donation at a time, for Ellis and for everyone affected by brain tumours.”

World’s biggest bra marks wear it pink day

Vanish, supporter of Breast Cancer Campaign’s wear it pink, has created the world’s biggest bra to mark the largest day of fundraising in Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The bra has been rigged up on the ITV Southbank building, where it will be officially revealed on This Morning by Hollyoaks actress Gemma Merna on 28th October, providing an eye-popping sight on both sides of the Thames.

Guinness officials have granted record-breaking status for the giant pink bra, which measures 32 metres around the ‘chest’ and features cups that are 34B, would be a size 1222B in real terms. The bra will now take its place in the Guinness Book of Records.

“After last year’s successful partnership with Breast Cancer Campaign we knew we wanted to come up with something innovative and ‘big’ for 2011” said Stefan Gaa, Marketing Director of RB UK, manufacturers of Vanish. Building the world’s largest bra seemed to be tailor made for wear it pink day. Vanish is very proud to be involved with this important campaign, supporting Campaign through on pack and Facebook donations. This is an issue that affects so many women and their families and Campaign are doing a vital job in raising funds for research and keeping breast cancer high profile. The Vanish/Breast Cancer Campaign record-breaking bra is a fitting focal point for this year’s fundraising activities.”

Last year hundreds of thousands of people took part in wear it pink by wearing an item of pink and each donating £2, raising a staggering £2.5 million for breast cancer research. Every year, some 48,000 are diagnosed with breast cancer and wear it pink helps to fund cutting-edge research into this disease which affects so many.

wear it pink is supported by Vanish, which has committed to raising an incredible £250,000 for the charity this year. The giant bra was modelled on a design supplied by Debenhams, the official wear it pink t-shirt retailer.

Donate at wearitpink.co.uk or text PINK44 £2 to 70070

FACTFILE:

• The bra took 4 weeks to make from lightweight spinnaker nylon
• It took 375 square metres of fabric
• It measures 27 metres under the bust, 31 metres around the bust
• It is equivalent to a 34B
• The fabric weights 75 kilos but with the metal fasteners it weighs a total of 90 kilo

Back to Basic as Charity Fundraisers Open New Facility for People with Brain Injuries

A new facility to help people with serious brain injuries has opened in Salford thanks to the fundraising efforts of kindhearted staff at an Altrincham-based motorcycle insurance firm.

Marathon runs, cycle rides and even a trek across Arctic waste lands were among activities undertaken by employees of Carole Nash in aid of the Brain & Spinal Injuries Centre (BASIC). The £15,000 they raised covered the cost of a conservatory extension to the charity’s specialist BodyBASIC gym. This now houses three high tec machines which will help hundreds of brain injured people every year to recover their balance, gait, posture and ability to support their own weight.

The new facility was officially opened by Carole Nash’s chief executive, David Newman, who himself raised several thousand pounds undertaking a gruelling expedition to the North Pole. Fellow director Simon Jackson also made a major contribution by completing the Great North Run with a team of Carole Nash employees. Other activities which the company’s staff used to raise money included a Manchester to Blackpool cycle ride and a sponsored walk from Styal to popular bikers’ haunt, the Cat and Fiddle pub near Macclesfield.

BASIC fundraiser Andy Golightly said that the support of Carole Nash staff had been vital. “We’re incredibly grateful firstly that Carole Nash nominated BASIC as the company’s Charity of the Year and secondly that so many staff got involved and raised so much money. Without them and their efforts our 450 clients would have been denied access to an invaluable facility which will improve their health and wellbeing and lead to a better quality of life.”

The BodyBASIC gym is just one of over thirty services provided by BASIC which also includes counselling, complementary therapy, vocational guidance and practical advice. Over their 25-year history they have developed into a unique, innovative and diverse organisation and are professional experts at rebuilding lives following brain and spinal injury.

Opening the gym extension David Newman said: “I am immensely proud of the way Carole Nash as a whole got behind this major fundraising challenge. It fills me with such pride to now be stood here seeing how that money has been used and knowing that so many lives will be improved by this facility and the brilliant staff who operate it. This can only add to the already magnificent work that BASIC does and which my colleagues and I have previously witnessed first hand when visiting the centre.”

FACTFILE:
BASIC was founded by Bolton businessman Derek Gaskell after his wife returned home following life saving brain surgery at Hope Hospital, Salford. Initially she was unable to do anything for herself being incapable of walking or talking and suffering depression. Over many years she made a good recovery but affected by the experience Mr. Gaskell launched Neurosurgical Research (later named the Brain & Spinal Injuries Centre) in 1986.

Today it provides counselling, information and support services locally, regionally and nationally for patients and their families. Its achievements include funding life-saving technology for the Greater Manchester Clinical Neuroscience Centre and the UK’s first specialist subarachnoid haemorrhage nurse. For further details visit http://basiccharity.org.uk.

Carole Nash was ranked as the UK’s 40th biggest UK insurance broker in August 2010 by Insurance Times magazine and employs over employs over 300 staff in the UK and in Ireland. It provides insurance for some 300,000 classic, vintage, modern, custom and off road motorcycles – around 20 percent of all licensed machines. Its market-leading status has also been confirmed by the independent bikers’ survey, RiDER Power, which has found the company the Most Used Broker in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. The company is also a leading player in the classic car sector with its portfolio also spanning modern car, van, military vehicle, travel and home insurance.

How Serious Law can help following a brain injury

Suffering a brain injury can have a catastrophic impact on your life, it is a daunting prospect knowing who to turn after such an injury has occurred.

Choosing to claim compensation for this type of injury will not only allow you peace of mind when worrying about the impact the event will have on your earning capability, it will also financially support you and your family who may be in a vulnerable position caring for you following such a serious injury.

Why Serious Law?
Serious Law has over 20 years experience of working with those affected by brain injury, and so argue that they are in the best position to offer help and advice. Their services have been developed based on their experiences working with people like yourself, and they work with medical professionals and leading brain and head injury charities to provide their clients with the best possible assistance during this difficult time.

What help can you receive?
Substantial brain injury compensation awards are possible for those who have suffered from a brain injury that was not their fault. So far, Serious Law have secured over £300 million in personal injury cases, and for some clients who have sustained brain and head injury, in excess of £5 million is possible.

Quite apart from the monetary compensation, more practical assistance can be offered by the specialists at Serious Law. They can arrange private nursing, rehabilitation solutions and modifications to housing and vehicles at no cost to their client.

Contact Serious Law now on 0800 61 66 81.

(EDITOR: Whilst there are some who argue against the so-called compensation culture, it is good to know that if someone has received a brain injury through no fault of their own that has impacted on their abilities to earn a living or to function in their roles as wife, husband or parent, that there are people like Serious Law who can offer skilled advice and legal representation, should this be required.)

Serious Law have the expertise needed in a brain injury solicitor

It is sad to say but, in many cases, brain trauma is caused as a result of the negligence of someone else. Somebody, somewhere, just did not think, and someone else has to pay the price for their negligence.

If you or your loved one has suffered this type of injury it is important to seek expert representation in this area to make an accident claim.

Serious Law have over 20 years experience in this area and ensure their clients are kept informed of the process and supported every step of the way. Serious Law have many factors which make them ideal to represent in such cases.

Firstly they are accredited by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, and have won many substantial compensation awards for their clients totalling several million pounds. They employ accommodation specialists to advise on adaptations to homes and vehicles of those who are injured, and importantly they have access to 24 hour nursing care to support those affected.

Serious Law solicitors do not stop supporting their clients even when they have won a case, they provide a lifetime of support and help to ensure your future is protected after an injury which was not your fault.

If you have suffered a brain injury in an accident then start getting the assistance and brain injury compensation you deserve by contacting Serious Law on 0800 61 66 81.

Brain injury. Help when you need it

The injustice of being robbed of the right to a basic standard of life that a brain injury can result in is something no financial gain can ever really put right. This is a statement that may ring true with many.

But whilst that is true, a successful brain injury claim could provide the foundation to making a recovery, providing assistance in funding therapy and private care.

Brain injuries are complex. This means the applicable criteria for a brain injury solicitor is much more specific than that of a solicitor dealing with a typical accident claim. A brain injury solicitor is crucial when making a brain injury claim.

But, the small number of serious injury law firms may not fill those looking to make a brain injury compensation claim with much confidence.

However, there are several factors that might make finding a brain injury solicitor a little easier, specifically focusing on the accreditations the firm holds.

In the case of finding a brain injury solicitor, the accreditation to be sought is that of Headway.

Headway are the brain injury association charity; any serious injury law firm accredited by Headway and other such brain injury charities are likely to have brain injury solicitors on their books. A good brain injury solicitor is always an asset to a brain injury compensation claim.