Two Cliff Richard super-fans deserve a ‘congratulations’ after taking on a multi-sport challenge which tipped their fundraising over an incredible £10,000 for Birmingham Women’s Hospital Charity.

Lottie Lindley, 59 from Gainsborough and her best friend Zoe Gates, 42 from Leighton Buzzard, met at the Cliff Richard Fan Club of Birmingham which fervently supports the local Birmingham Women’s Hospital as its chosen charity. However, when the pandemic struck and fundraisers halted, Lottie and Zoe took matters into their own hands. After raising over a whopping £6,000 by taking on a synchronised endurance bike ride in 2020, two years later the pair decided it was time to get back in the saddle to raise some more.

This time around Lottie and Zoe wanted to switch up their challenge, adding two more activities into the mix. First the friends ran three miles through the forest, then as Lottie took the plunge and completed 30 lengths of her local swimming pool, Zoe completed a 20-mile bike ride on the road. To complete their challenge, Lottie and Zoe then cycled a bumpy 30 miles through the forest.

The two friends found the challenge tough, but they kept each other going across the finish line and were thrilled to find that their efforts had paid off. Between donations from their generous friends at the Cliff Richard Fan Club and their other friends and family, Lottie and Zoe raised a further £4,000 for Birmingham Women’s Hospital Charity, taking their total to over £10,000.

Lottie said: “We’ve always been very supportive of the Cliff Richard Fan Club’s chosen charity, and we wanted to keep the momentum up after our first fundraiser raised so much.

“The last challenge, cycling through the forest, really was difficult, especially training for the event, so we think it might be time to park our bikes for the time being, but we’re really proud to have raised so much for the charity. We couldn’t have done it without our friends at the fan club though, so we’d like to give a big thank you to them.”

Miranda Williams, Head of Public Fundraising at Birmingham Women’s Hospital Charity, said: “We count ourselves so lucky to have such dedicated supporters like the Cliff Richard Fan Club of Birmingham and Lottie and Zoe, who have raised an incredible amount for us over the past couple of years.

“The fantastic sum they raised will help us to continue supporting our hospital and improve the experiences of countless women, babies and families.”