Jo Brand's Hell of a Walk for Sport Relief

In the last few years, Sport Relief has challenged some of our most

athletic celebrities to help raise money for charity.

Mmm.

But this year is different.

I think it's because I'm really fit.

In both senses of the word.

Rebel comedian Jo Brand

is attempting to walk across England from east to west.

Sport Relief don't know what they've let themselves in for.

This is a 58-year-old woman, who is incredibly unfit,

is morbidly obese.

Ow!

This has the potential to be an absolute car crash.

It's a mad march over some of Britain's toughest terrain.

Oh, my God!

A challenge that's going to push her both physically...

-You can see the conditions...

-Whoa!

Oh, hello, Jo's over.

..and mentally.

There was a massive, dark vacuum in my head

that smacked to me of suicide.

She'll attempt to walk up to 14 hours...

MOCK SOBBING

..and over 20 miles each day.

Let me go home!

With friends to push her on...

That's really helpful, thank you, Alan.

..and the nation behind her...

Thank you very much.

..it's going to be one hell of a walk.

What is this all about?!

This programme contains strong language.

The fine art of tying one's shoelaces.

It's just that I've got quite fat feet.

And not only are they quite fat, they get fatter when I'm walking.

We've got the defib and we've got the oxygen,

so you'll be all right.

It's the first day of Jo Brand's Sport Relief challenge.

A car full of old blokes.

My sexual fantasy, that is.

I am a reasonably ordinary person of 58 years old.

I've been through the menopause, and that's made me really grumpy,

which I'm enjoying immensely.

'I'm married. I have two children who are in their teens.'

I'm worried about what time my daughter's piano lesson is.

'I've a really busy life.'

And that's before I even start the walking business, you know.

It all comes to this.

And...

Yeah, I'm going home later.

See that big bridge in the background?

I'm going to do a swallow dive off the middle of it.

-Best of luck, Jo!

-OK.

Five, four, three...!

Thank you very much.

..two, one!

HORN

CHEERING

Jo is planning to walk the Trans Pennine Trail,

one side of the country to the other,

From the Humber Bridge to Liverpool.

From the lows of the Humberhead peatlands,

to the heights of the Peak District.

Over 20 miles, every day, for a week.

Her route is not the most direct.

Instead, she winds through

the towns and cities

of the industrialised North.

A gruelling trek, even for a seasoned walker.

It's not going to be easy.

Although I am an optimistic person,

so I prefer to think that I'm going to manage it.

And I think it's very important that I do manage it,

because I'm doing this

on behalf of all the portly, middle-aged women in the country

who need to get up off their bums,

get a bit of exercise,

live a bit longer!

So they can bicker with their husbands a few more years,

shout at their kids for a bit longer,

and eat more chips!

Anyone know the way?

Morning!

-Good luck, smash it!

-Thank you very much.

Today's route will take Jo more than 20 miles,

following the Humber Estuary inland.

She'll be visiting the small and sometimes forgotten towns,

to meet the people who shape those communities.

And she's attracting a crowd already.

This wonderful woman here has walked to Liverpool from here

three times, is that right?

I've done this route three times, yeah.

She's put me to shame.

-Good morning, are you all right?

-Only another 138 go!

-BLEEP

-knackered already.

I really am! I really am.

I love Jo,

because she don't give a toss about what she looks like

or what she says.

Have a good walk!

She don't put on a face.

This is Jo. As you see her, this is Jo.

One reason I want to do this is because I'm getting older.

As women age, they're presumed by the rest of society

to be a bit dowdy and blobby

and, in many ways, pretty useless.

I'm so proud of you!

They just become more invisible the older they get.

-It's quite nice having your own personal lollipop lady.

-Oh, yes.

-Thank you very much.

-The power!

I kind of do want to do it.

Hopefully, calling other women my age and my level of fitness

to arms and saying, you know, it's not as bad as you think.

-This way.

-Over there?

Anne Hardy started walking as a form of therapy.

-And do you do walking normally?

-I don't really.

I thought I was getting divorced a few years ago,

and I started walking, just to pad round the streets and de-stress,

so I weren't in the house with him.

-That is quite a good way to do it.

-It did.

-It works all sorts out in your head, really, walking.

-Yeah, yeah.

If she can do it, anybody can do it, really.

We've all got inner strengths, and sometimes,

it ain't until we're actually called to pull them out the bag,

that we realise what we have got.

I think that's something that a lot of women, they do compromise

for the sake of, not only their other half, but their kids as well.

You spend a lot of time doing what THEY want.

And so the opportunity to please yourself,

-I think, it is really great.

-It is.

In fact, I'm going to get a divorce.

-You've inspired me.

-Are you? Is that the new news?

-Is that the breaking news today?

-Hello, you watching, love?

THEY LAUGH

Get down the solicitors.

Kids, I'm only joking!

Seven miles in on day one, and Jo's making good progress.

But things were very different four months ago,

when she attended a Sport Relief fitness assessment.

I haven't got my right shoes on.

Why not?

I have got some jogging bottoms, but I think the moths have had them.

I've got no idea if she understand the enormity of the challenge.

I've no idea what her current physical condition is.

Do me a favour and just pop onto the saddle...

Greg Whyte, an ex-Olympian, is more used to training elite athletes.

-We're going to put lots of bits of kit on you...

-OK, fair enough.

He needs to assess whether she's up to the challenge.

This test, as you'll see, really is about how long she can go for.

She's got to keep pushing and pushing and pushing.

Anyone got any fags?

LAUGHTER

If she gives up early, that's a very bad sign for us.

A fit 58-year-old person should be able to sustain this

for half an hour.

Let's go now, Jo.

I'm faltering a bit.

Let's drive, let's drive!

Jo has been going for just over...

ten minutes.

Great work, Jo, keep it there.

-Good, good, good.

-Sorry...

No, don't be sorry. That's great work, well done.

The one thing we saw from the test is Jo is not very fit.

But actually, the big worry is her weight.

She's got a BMI of 41, that makes her morbidly obese.

The weight that you carry is non-functional.

And obviously, with walking, it's going to load the ankles,

-the knees, the hips, the lower back.

-Yeah.

And what she's got to do, she's got to carry that weight

throughout this challenge, hour after hour, mile after mile.

It's like me carrying two small children on my back.

I know, I realise that.

Jo is halfway through her first day,

and has left civilisation - and the roads - behind.

This is actually quite arduous terrain.

I thought this was mainly roads today?

Once you get clogged up,

you end up carrying half the field with you.

As predicted, Jo is beginning to feel the stress on her joints.

-Walking through that field

-BLEEP

-my leg up massively, actually.

Here, right up there.

Going that way.

The top of my leg's hurting.

You know, there's nothing that can be done about it,

it just hurts when I walk.

But it's not a big deal, it's not absolute agony, so...

I'm just living with it.

To give Jo every chance of success,

there's a medical team walking with her.

You can see from the way she's walking,

she's doing trick movements to try and get around it,

to ease the pain.

But what she's doing is causing other potential problems

with overusing other muscles.

Jo's injured a muscle on her hip, which is causing severe leg pain.

No change.

I know.

You can see it immediately with Jo,

because what she does, she goes very quiet.

She goes inside herself, and that is...

That's the way that some people deal with it,

but the problem with that is that can't go on.

This is day one, she's got another six days to go.

We have to try and crack that.

Today, Jo has covered 21 miles.

Take me to A & E!

But the final stretch has taken its toll.

-Watch is on?

-Watch is off.

-Hell of a walk though, wasn't it?

-Wasn't it?

Dot, the physio, needs to minimise the effects of the injury.

-Happy days.

-Happy days.

This ice bath will help reduce inflammation.

This is the best thing you need right now.

Because you would wake up stiff as a board tomorrow,

-and you would not be interested in going for another little walk.

-OK.

Ugh!

Jo has come a long way in a short time.

Three months ago, she couldn't even make it up a hill.

-You're working very hard, keep moving, keep squeezing.

-Help!

Not far to go now.

-Do you have any fears?

-Not really, no.

I realise that I am the sort of person that just doesn't

think about things and I just to do them.

I think, actually, that's quite a good strategy,

in a way, because that's how I dealt with going into comedy.

I just didn't think about how bad it could get until it happened.

The reason that you do stand-up

is that there is some emotional trauma...

I've met a lot of stand-ups who had lost a parent

when they were very young, for example.

And they've toughened themselves up,

and that's why they can do stand-up, really.

-Makes them quite robust.

-It does, it really does.

Do you think you are? You're robust?

Well, I look robust.

Yeah, I think I really am.

I had a really, really difficult job when I was a nurse.

A lot of violence, a lot of abuse. Just a lot of stress, really.

You go on stage at the Comedy Store and someone goes,

"Oh, you fat lezza", you kind of go, "Oh, yeah..."

-You know, cos...

-You've heard it before.

-Exactly.

And much, much worse.

Today's 21-mile route follows the river Ouse

through the town of Goole...

..the last eight miles crossing the Humberhead peatlands,

England's biggest peat bog.

The day's not started well.

Just an hour in, and Jo's injured leg has seized up.

Not there, no. That's fine.

-Just in there?

-Yeah, it's higher up, yeah.

The leg's bad. It's as simple as that.

The problem is, as she walks, it gets worse and worse.

She says it, comically, that it's OK until she walks,

but that's absolutely true.

Fortunately, Jo does have some support -

friend and fellow stand-up, Alan Davies.

It says, "Goole, the UK's premier inland port."

This is the nicest bit so far.

Yeah. Rural!

Goole was once a thriving inland port.

But as some ships got bigger

and were unable to navigate the river,

much of the trade moved on.

-Are you all right?

-Hello!

But it's still a strong community,

and many have turned out to meet Jo.

Something like this doesn't usually happen in Goole,

so it's very exciting.

Thank you very much. Morning, hiya.

Welcome to Goole, I'm deputy mayor.

Oh, hello, deputy mayor, thank you very much.

-Hello, welcome.

-How are you? Thank you so much.

How are you finding it?

-Well, so far, it's pedestrianised.

-Morning!

With the aggravating pain in her leg,

Jo's struggling to maintain her public face.

Nice when the members of the public drift off,

just to give you a bit of a break,

instead of having to talk endless bollocks at them.

You don't talk bollocks, Jo.

I do, to members of the public.

You can see it now, that hobble that's coming on.

But we've got about half a mile until our lunch stop.

Which means she'll have done 12 miles by the time we get there.

But she's hurting, and it's going to be a long afternoon.

I think I'm walking slowly and I look round,

and she's about 100 yards away.

She won't walk with me.

She's asked me to come, and now she's basically blanking me.

-Is she? Why?

-I don't know. I've done something.

OK. Just rest on it, and just don't swing your arms

as if you're normally swinging your arms.

Oh, please.

-Sorry.

-OK.

I know it's very entertaining for you, but it isn't for me.

It's not entertaining for me, Jo.

Is she upset with you?

No, she's just upset with everybody. She's grumpy.

And she's grumpy - why is she grumpy?

She's grumpy cos she's in pain,

she's grumpy cos she's tired, and she's grumpy because she knows

she's got a very, very long way to go.

Do these torture scenes go down well with the general public,

do you suppose?

Ow!

Yeah, fuck, that is hurty.

Ow!

The more pain, the more money you raise.

Is that right?

-Is a relationship between those?

-There is, seriously.

You're joking! Really?

I can't do this bloody... Honestly! I can't even do a coat up any more.

What did Greg say to you just now?

He said, "Stop being a wimp and get on with it."

So I said, "All right."

Turning an unfit 58-year-old into an endurance athlete

has been quite a task for Greg.

A week before the challenge,

Jo meets her oldest friends Betty and Edana

to discuss progress.

So how did it go today?

Well, this week,

because it's the last proper week of training, I'm supposed

to be doing three half-marathons - today, yesterday and the day before.

-Oh, my God. Even just that makes me feel slightly sick.

-Anyway...

Today, I couldn't be arsed.

So I haven't done it!

I have another life, you know?

And I simply couldn't afford to spend four-five hours

for three mornings in a row.

Do you feel confident that you don't feel you need

to follow Greg's regime?

Well, actually, I didn't do yesterday's either.

But I haven't told him that.

-Seriously?

-I did a bit.

What, to the toilet?

No, I went to the shops.

Greg is going to be really upset.

She generally jokes about smoking, about drinking

and about being overweight.

So, without any shadow of a doubt,

as soon as we enter onto a serious topic,

particularly about the challenge itself -

not necessarily about life, but on the challenge -

the first thing she does is make a joke.

And I think that, for me, is a protective mechanism.

She doesn't want to admit that she's worried,

she doesn't want to admit that she is concerned

about how tough this challenge is going to be.

So the easiest way for her to do that is mask it with a joke.

Let's go through the bog in the dark.

Hope someone get sucked into their doom.

I'm hoping it's going to be me.

It's 5pm, and Jo now has to across the Humberhead peatlands.

You're all right, Jo.

I've just been through it, I'm showing you.

That's the worst of it.

I know, but you've got wellingtons on.

-I know.

-I haven't.

If you go quickly.

I can't go quickly, sorry.

All right, I'll just have to get my feet wet, whatever happens.

-You should be OK.

-Ugh!

Keep going.

Is this route deliberately designed to test our patience?

No, this route is designed as the straightest possible route

to reduce distance.

-Oh, OK.

-So it does feel like somebody's taking the piss.

Go right down the middle.

It's taken Jo an hour to walk the last mile.

This leg is absolutely killing me.

OK.

Alan's gone ahead to meet Jo's friends Betty and Edana,

who've come to lend their support.

-I'm all right.

-OK.

I didn't anticipate that walking could be this slow.

But then I've never walked across a peat bog in the dead of night.

LAUGHTER

Whoa...

-Argh!

-Did Jo just fall over?

Jo did just fall over, yeah.

Jesus Christ.

Very, very nearly in the canal.

That would've been the largest insurance claim

in the history of BBC television.

Who thinks that the object of Comic Relief films

is to push the people that do them quite hard

so that they have some sort of breakdown?

Cos we all like to see someone having a cry.

It's true, though, isn't it?

-It is part of the human psyche.

-It is.

And apparently, the more someone cries,

the more people donate.

-You'd best get bloody crying then.

-Yes, I bloody better.

I'm not fucking crying!

MOCK SOBBING

I'm in the bog in the middle of the night and my leg's hurting,

let me go home!

-She sounds pissed!

-Hello!

This is so shit here.

Tell me how... This is my friends, Betty and Edana.

Your husband has cooked you brownies, packed full of caffeine.

There'll be laxatives and cocaine in them.

-ALAN:

-You better keep going, there's five miles to go.

Is there five miles left to go?

Oh, for fuck's sake.

# Do you ever walk alone?

# Do you ever walk alone?

# Like a drifter in the dark

# Like a drifter in the dark

# Seeking out what isn't there

# Seeking out what isn't there

# Looking only for a spark... #

It's 9pm, and after 21 miles, battling against injury,

Jo completes her second day.

It was just a really hard slog.

There was a massive, dark vacuum in my head

that smacked to me of suicide.

And it was just really grim.

I was soaking wet, there were members of the public there

who were cheery and going, "It's so lovely to see you",

and I just simply could not muster the good grace to be lovely.

# Like a drifter in the dark. #

Today's walk has pushed Jo to breaking point.

But she's made the choice to walk.

Millions of women don't have that choice.

This remote, rural health centre in Zambia serves over 7,000 people.

Many of those that use it have to walk here.

Bridget was pregnant,

living 12 miles from the health centre.

IN OWN LANGUAGE:

With no ambulance to call, Bridget gave birth at home

and then set out for the clinic.

But she arrived too late.

In Zambia, less than half of women give birth in a medical centre.

But there is hope.

Samuel is an ambulance bicycle driver,

funded by Sport Relief.

His job is to pick up expectant mothers

and get them to hospital as quickly as possible.

Bicycle ambulance drivers like Samuel save lives.

Just £30 allows Sport Relief

to train a bicycle ambulance volunteer.

It could make all the difference.

When I woke up, I felt really terrible.

And I thought, "Right, I'm going to have to go home and go to hospital."

And once I got up, I felt fine.

I can do another day without crying.

Ooh! That hurts though.

-Take care, Jo.

-All righty, bye!

Bye, Bye-bye.

Considering the pain that Jo was in last night,

this is a remarkable turnaround.

Today's route passes through the heartland

of Britain's industrial past.

It's a chance for Jo to visit communities that were once

the beating heart of the British economy.

In its heyday, this area of South Yorkshire

had more than 40 coalmines

powering the great steel and iron furnaces of the North.

We've got a nice little gang, haven't we?

Hello, mate! Aw!

Some of the walkers joining Jo today have been part of this industry.

Hiya, Jo. My name's Bob Fitzpatrick, nice to meet you, love.

How you doing? Nice to meet you too.

You're a miner, are you? Or were.

I was a miner, I got made redundant six months ago.

What I'm interested in about mining

is it seems the most scary, difficult job.

Once you get in with t'craic, with the lads and that,

it's one of the best jobs you could ever have.

The camaraderie was brilliant.

I think that's the most important aspect of work, isn't it, really?

How you get on with your mates and whether you have a laugh not.

-It kept communities vibrant as well.

-Yes, exactly.

That's what we're missing up here in Yorkshire especially,

with communities.

Oh, well, I'm sorry to hear that.

I think when you lose a group of good mates

and a spirit like that,

it's so hard to ever replace it, really.

All the deep mines in the UK are closed

and unemployment is now the third-highest in the country.

In the last two years, Sport Relief have supported

over 250 projects in Yorkshire and Humberside alone,

from advice and counselling services to community centres.

And there's lots of local support.

There's some really generous donations from people here.

I did read some research recently that said percentage-wise,

poorer people actually give far more,

donate far more,

as a relative percentage of their income

than wealthy people do,

which is obviously something that we always suspected -

that wealthy people are quite mean compared to poor people.

So really, being here just reinforces what I always thought -

that the people who can least afford it are the most generous.

And it's heart-warming, really.

-Hey, Jo.

-Hello there.

-Piece of cake for you.

-Oh, my word!

-Oh, hello.

-Hello!

Crikey!

The ladies at The Junction have prepared this cake for you.

How fantastic.

Thank you very much.

Joining Jo today in Hexthorpe is TV presenter Gabby Logan.

Those people are from a local church,

and they've stopped and made coffee and tea and biscuits.

But Greg's being a real spoilsport and he's making us go on.

But I've stuck a Club biscuit in my pocket that he doesn't know about.

Jo can't help herself, she just wants to chat.

Does it matter that I don't believe?

Not at all, not at all.

Shouldn't you have had your cake first before you said that?

And eaten it?

-Hello.

-I think you're doing brilliant.

-Well, thank you.

-You've got the support of Hexthorpe.

-I appreciate it.

I'm really flattered by that, thank you.

Hey, Jo, do you want this?

I'd love it!

It'll only take you six mile and then you'll need to recharge.

Six mile would do me!

-Keep warm.

-I will, I'm going out tonight.

-Oh, have fun!

-On the razzle.

It is certainly a way to get to know an area.

You can't get to know it if you drive through.

I must say, I've just been surprised by how generous

and positive people are.

Just thinking, a few politicians could do this,

then they'd really discover

what lies at the heart of England, really.

Spurred on by her supporters,

Jo has finished her 21 miles in record time.

-CHEERING

-Welcome to Yorkshire, Jo!

Thanks to the generosity of communities like these,

so far, she's raised over £200,000.

This time of day, I'm usually running around frantically

trying to get the kids to school.

So this is, at the moment,

more pleasurable than what I'm used to.

Because at least it's stress-free.

Having said that, we are only three minutes in.

THEY LAUGH

Friend and comedian Lee Mack is joining Jo for the day.

But just a few miles in, they need an emergency stop.

-D'you think this man will let us use his toilet?

-I don't know, let's ask.

-Hello.

-How are you?

-I'm all right, are you?

-This is a really cheeky question.

-Yeah.

-Can I have your car?

-Can we use your toilet? Is that all right?

-No problem.

Do you mind what we do in your toilet?

-No.

-Oh, good.

Come on. Party.

Wipe your feet.

D'you want to use the downstairs one?

Yeah, why not?

Let's bomb both of them.

-Straight through.

-Through the sliding door.

-Did you get your teeth in in time?

-Yes, I did.

There's nothing more relaxing than going to the toilet

knowing there's a camera crew waiting outside the door.

-It helps me go.

-I'm very grateful and very sorry at the same time.

-I really...

-She ends all of her shows like that.

Not ticking the box of keeping going, is it?

Bye, thanks a million.

Today, Jo faces an energy-sapping climb

following the Trans Pennine Trail up onto the Peak District.

The route climbs to barren and exposed moorland.

It's a day that Jo has been specially training for.

Twice a week, I do a long walk,

which includes this hill.

It turns out that walking is in her blood.

Well, my mum and dad met

at the Socialist Ramblers Association.

So we've always had a bit of a history of walking.

So, when we were kids...

..they did what all parents do, they make you go out for a walk

when you don't want to.

When I was eight, my dad and I,

we walked up Snowdon together.

You know, to have some time on your own with your dad

is quite unusual, really.

And as I got older, I didn't want to have any time on my own with him,

so we kind of got on well when I was eight.

My dad has always suffered from depression.

So if I'm being honest, God bless him,

he wasn't a laugh a minute.

But, you know, he was our dad.

What I quite like doing is looking back and seeing what I've done.

But I think TV is deceptive and the viewer will think

that doesn't look very steep, but it bloody well is!

Jo's hill training means she's kept up a good pace today.

But with 10 miles to go, darkness is approaching.

When you've got light, what you do is use landmarks.

The trouble is, along here, when it gets dark, there's nothing.

-You are looking into the abyss.

-It's that wild animal...

You'll see later.

It is really tough in the dark.

As the path gets steeper, Jo begins to feel the effects.

-Oh, I don't like heights.

-Don't you?

-No.

-The uphill bit or the actual...?

I do not like heights,

I keep telling them...not to make me walk alongside.

"Let's, for a laugh, put Jo next to a big drop

"and then see what happens."

I think it'd be fair to say Jo is probably at a bit of a low ebb.

I've just sort of left her on her own for a while, so she can...

There's nothing worse than making polite conversation with someone

when you've had enough.

So I thought it would be best to just leave her.

I just don't like it, with the big drop over that side.

To make things worse for Jo, the weather is closing in.

WIND HOWLS

Weather report. These winds are going to continue, 50mph.

But they're actually saying, look, six inches of rain.

We've definitely got to keep moving, there's no doubt about that,

we can't stop in that sort of weather.

Sorry, I'm really finding this hard.

-NEWS:

-'Heavy rain and strong winds across the majority of Scotland,

'northern England, Wales and Ireland.

'Gales are also expected, with gusts up to 70mph, especially...'

Basically, this is the storm that hit New York

and gave them two foot of snow in a day.

It's come across the Atlantic and since that time,

it's turned to rain.

The gale is forecast to worsen

and the last section of the day is out on an exposed part of the Peaks.

Greg makes a difficult decision.

I'm going to make a call that we stop at the next pit stop, OK, Jo?

If it's just me that's holding everyone up,

I'll try and go a bit faster.

It's got absolutely nothing to do with you and your ability.

-It's actually about keeping people safe.

-OK.

We've only got three miles to go to complete the day

and we're about to come onto the Peaks.

So, fundamentally, it's about Jo's safety, really.

We've got 40mph, 50mph gusting winds, heavy rain.

But these conditions are just too dangerous.

Jo's walked nearly 17 miles, most of it uphill.

But it's been hard going.

To lift her spirits, there's a surprise waiting for her.

Here's your surprise.

-Hurrah!

-Oi, girl. My God!

Jo's favourite singer-songwriter, Billy Bragg.

I found my guitar, they brought me up to sing you a song.

What do you reckon?

It's my favourite song.

# It may have been Camelot for Jack and Jacqueline

# But on the Che Guevara highway filling up with gasoline

# Fidel Castro's brother spies a rich lady who's crying

# Over luxury's disappointment

# So he walks over

# And he's trying to sympathise with her

# But he thinks that he should warn her

# That the Third World is just around the corner... #

The weather is going to be terrible

and we're walking very high up, over kind of exposed land.

Greg is very sensible, he doesn't tell me anything.

I'm quite an emotionally blunted person, in some ways,

and I prefer to deal with life

by not thinking about what's going to happen,

and it makes it much easier.

It's like with stand-up,

you can have some terrible experiences in stand-up,

but I don't really think about what's going to happen

before it happens because that just makes it worse.

So, with this, I'm not going to think about it till it happens.

I'm just going to deal with it.

I don't care. It's wet - big deal.

You know, just deal with it.

Famous last words.

-LAUGHTER

-Famous last words.

"Oh, Greg, oh, Greg,

"I'm soaking wet and I'm really tired."

-That's what I'm really going to be like.

-Get on with it!

-LAUGHING:

-Exactly.

-Were you like that before you were a stand-up?

-Yeah.

It's my dad's fault.

My dad had a depressive illness.

He's a kind of very interesting character, emotionally.

And I've got a bit of that, I think.

But I just don't think about anything.

If I think it's going to be negative,

I don't bother to think about.

Jo will have a lot to think about.

Storm Jonas has hit the Peak District.

What can I say, except it's not raining yet.

Wahoo! It's everything else except raining.

With countrywide flood alerts, road closures and severe gales,

it's been dubbed

"the storm of the century".

Is this really necessary?

What is this all about?!

One of the problems travelling east-west

is that Jo is always facing the prevailing wind.

In these conditions, it's difficult to keep going.

Right, finish, no more stopping. OK, she can't stop again.

Sorry. She can't do it, yeah?

At the top of a hill, Jo feels the full force of the storm.

Oh, my God!

WIND HOWLS

Up ahead, the crew receive news of another accident.

-There's vehicles getting blown over on the road.

-Right.

So we want to get out of this area as quickly as possible.

-OK.

-OK, so our main factor

is the safety of Jo - simple as that, end of.

We need to make the choice of whether we carry on whether we stop.

They're talking about it right now in my earpiece.

My contribution to that decision is it's game over.

It's not about being over the top with health and safety.

That's not my game, I want to be as adventurous as possible,

but it gets to the line where you go too far.

But Jo is determined to push on.

They're talking about calling it here, Jo.

-Uh?

-Stopping you.

-Yeah?

I'm happy to walk a bit more of this.

OK, let's get going.

-Are you sure she's happy with that?

-Definitely.

Let me speak to the boss and we'll go from there.

I'm all for calling it. You can see the conditions.

-Oh!

-Oh, hello, Jo's over.

Oh, thank you. Soaking wet, now.

-Are you all right? Are you OK?

-Yeah, fine.

Jo has completed the worst section of the walk.

But it's taken her four hours to walk just 4.6 miles.

There are seasoned hill walkers who wouldn't have bothered doing that.

-Oh, really?

-Seriously.

Hurrah, I'm a seasoned hill walker now!

Well, hardly seasoned, but I've done it once.

Look, you go and have a cup of tea,

I'm just popping back up to have another crack.

You're going to do it again?

Jo's heroic efforts crossing the Peaks

have hit the news.

Welcome to Gamesley, Jo.

Hi, everybody.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Hundreds of people have turned out in Gamesley.

Thanks a lot. Cheers. Thanks for coming out.

-THEY CHANT:

-Go, Jo! Go, Jo! Go, Jo! Go, Jo!

And there's also someone else to cheer her along.

My word!

Hello, you.

I thought you might be a bit tired and need a bit of a...

I'm very tired. How are you?

I mean, it's quite weird being on foot as well

-because you're so accessible.

-Yes, indeed.

Has that been rather lovely or has it been overwhelming?

-Is the camera on?

-THEY LAUGH

-It's been really lovely.

-Crikey, are we climbing over this?

Why do we do this? Who organised this?

Every night we have, like, the fourth trial of Hercules.

Having conquered the Peaks, Jo has encountered another obstacle.

A stile.

I'm too fat to get... Oh, my God!

-I am.

-Don't be ridiculous.

-You're not.

Lift the boobs up over. Stand on there. Stand on that.

Bollocks, Davina. What's your name?

I'm shielding you, I'm shielding you.

No, I'm not coming.

Fuck off, everyone. I'm staying here.

So, put one foot...

I can't, because my legs won't go up the step.

-We'll pull you.

-Foot like that,

then put the foot through there, like that.

-I can't do that.

-We'll pull you.

You can because I'm going to get you to.

-Yes!

-Yes!

-I'm too fat to get...

-No, Jo.

-Oh, she's through.

She made it!

I think Jo didn't fully expect it to be this hard.

I want to stay here.

She knows where the money goes, she's seen what happens

at the projects that Sport Relief support.

And I think somewhere in the back of your head,

through the darkest of times, that is what gets you through.

Davina has gone. And the mood has darkened.

I just can't cope with it any more, I'm so stressed out.

With several hours ahead, Greg has to make a decision.

Hey, mate, we'll call it 9.30.

'She's very clear in her mind

'that she really wants to get to Liverpool,

'but she just can't cope with anything else.

'She is fucked. She is dead on her knees.'

The high winds on the Peaks have taken their toll.

She's apathetic, she's utterly fatigued.

It's just fundamentally too much for her.

After 13 hours on the road, Greg cuts the day short.

But Jo's efforts are paying off.

So far, she's raised nearly £400,000.

I think about where the money goes

because I think about that sort of thing quite a lot.

And I know what a privileged little bubble I live in

with the amount I earn and everything.

So I am very aware of that

and having had a relatively normal life for many years

before I did stand-up...

Thank you - sorry.

'..I know a lot of people have a dreadful life compared to me

'and I do feel terrible about that.'

Jo worked for 10 years as a psychiatric nurse

and her first call today is meeting Fatou,

who has been helped

by a Sport Relief-funded mental health charity

called Manchester Mind.

Fatou, very nice to meet you. How are you doing?

-I'm really good, thank you.

-Good.

-You've had contact with Mind here, haven't you?

-Yes, I have.

-And you found them a real help?

-Oh, yeah, definitely.

They've been able to support young people such as myself

and other people dealing with mental health.

23-year-old Fatou suffered from depression.

Depression just comes to you, it doesn't just ask you

"Do you want to feel depressed today?

"It's Tuesday, let's feel depressed."

That's not the way it goes.

Fatou's mother died when she was a baby.

By the age of 18, she was alone

and in desperate circumstances.

It got really bad.

I started to isolate myself, lock myself in the house,

just be on my own.

I went through loss. I went through loneliness,

I went through depression, anxiety, stress.

I went through all of it in one go.

Contemplated, um...

..suicide because of how I felt about myself.

Yeah.

-Hi, Fatou, are you OK?

-Yeah, I'm all right.

-Good.

But with the help of your Sport Relief donations,

Fatou found support.

So, thinking about the past, Fatou, what kind of things were difficult?

Oh, it was so bad, cos no-one could understand me.

When I got into contact with Manchester Mind,

things changed in a positive way.

It was something I was embarrassed about, I must say.

They've given me structure compared to, like, before.

They've given me a foundation and also they've given me a future.

It's a good thing. Yeah. A good thing.

Do you think that young people find it's something

-really hard to talk about?

-Oh, yes.

People feel uncomfortable, embarrassed,

like they're going to be judged.

I'd think a lot of people just think that it's kind of adults.

I think these days, it's just as big an issue for young people.

Young people, like I said, they just have the stigma with mental health.

I think people will look at you, you're a shining example of someone

that's worked through it

with the help of a support group, like Mind.

Yeah, definitely. Definitely.

You too can give young people like Fatou a future.

It costs just £25 for a professional counselling session.

My poor toes. I just don't want to get any worse.

I do just quite want to go to bed now, though.

That ain't gonna happen.

Jo's passed the 100 mile mark.

But with two more days to the finish,

she needs all the help she can get.

# He be up yon wurzel tree and I be a'er he... #

What is a wurzel? Is it a turnip?

She's joined by outdoor fanatic Bill Bailey.

This beautiful winter landscape.

What I've done here, Jo, I've transcribed some poems

and some inspirational walking quotes, about when you walk,

and you get into a different, sort of, state of mind.

You've written them down proper as well, I think that's lovely.

This is Bill Bryson.

"You exist in a mobile Zen mode,

"your brain, like a balloon tethered with string, accompanying,

"but not actually part of the body below."

That is great.

My brain is like a balloon.

-It's like a balloon on a string.

-Mine's popped.

See, this is lovely, isn't it?

I realise that I've just been sort of head down, striding,

and not really looked at very much.

I'm going to do my Noel Coward impersonation.

"I like long walks,

"especially when they are taken by people who annoy me."

Thanks to Bill, they've made good progress.

But as darkness falls, Jo's pace slows.

Have we got to speed up?

What we are now at is an amble,

which is effectively what you do when you're with your children.

# ..you shouldn't fall in love Doo-do-doo-doo... #

To some extent, he's just distracting her from the misery.

We've got singing...

# Like a leper Messiah... #

..we've had some poetry...

A child was born with no state of mind

Blind in the ways of mankind.

It's a beautiful example of sort of distraction.

But, you know, she's not hurting any less, she still wants to stop.

I'm trying to be happy.

It gets dark outside and in your head as well.

And it's hard to keep your pecker up.

-Are we having a stop-off?

-Yes.

-When is that?

-The stop-off is shortly.

When it gets dark, you've got no external stimulus,

you can't see anything, you can't look around,

you begin to internalise everything.

And weird things happen. It's almost like hallucinating.

It's at that point where I really worry.

This walk is all hard all the time,

and normally, I just wouldn't do stuff like this all week,

and I am absolutely exhausted.

And I've got myself to this state of mind

where I just plod on like an old donkey on a wheel...

..until someone hits me with a stick and goes, "It's over",

or puts me down.

Jo has slowed to a virtual standstill.

A bit dizzy.

Greg calls the day's walk to a halt.

If you'd done the final 2.8,

you simply wouldn't have been in bed until midnight,

and that would have only given you four, four-and-a-half hours' sleep.

Yeah. I think that might have gone horribly wrong, somehow.

Greg's decision means that Jo will be just short

of her full, planned distance.

But it's not for the lack of trying.

Well, I certainly hope I've given everything I've got

cos that's the sort of person I am, once I put my mind to it.

I would have hardly had any sleep.

I'm knackered and grumpy enough as it is

on the amount of sleep I'm getting.

I just think, be reasonable, you know?

And I think people will kind of understand that, really.

-Hello.

-Hello. Are you feeling well today?

No, suicidal.

-Oh, heck! Carry on, good luck.

-Thank you.

We're in Warrington town centre at 5.45am,

on our way to Liverpool.

It's the final day and Jo is up extra early.

First six days have been about making it.

Today, it's race day.

She needs to arrive in Liverpool at seven o'clock

to go live on The One Show.

Day seven, utterly fatigued, and yet the pressure is building.

If she makes it, she could raise substantially more money.

There is no choice. We have to keep this pace up today.

It's not far now.

To have any hope of making it,

they must hit each checkpoint on time.

-Right, let's do this thing.

-I'm coming.

We've got to do it in under two hours into the next stop, OK?

OK? Let's do it, come on, Jo.

-Can I go for a wee?

-Quickly.

What else can I think up to do?

Go, Jo! Go, Jo! Go, Jo!

But the closer to Liverpool, the bigger the crowds.

Let's keep moving, Jo.

And Jo finds it difficult not to stop.

Crikey. What an offer.

-We've not got far to go, thank you very much.

-Lovely to see you.

Thanks, guys, thanks, guys, let's go.

Whatever, bye.

Time-wise, it's very tight, actually.

I think we've got six miles to go.

So any small delays will have a knock-on

as to whether we pick up the pace

or we make her run the last couple of miles.

I think we're going to have to hope we don't have many delays.

But it is another big night tonight, isn't it?

Especially for comedian Jo Brand, who is hoping to complete

her epic cross-country walk for Sport Relief tonight.

We hear that it's going to be very close

to her finishing on the programme.

She's really digging in because she has to.

For fear...fear of not making it.

This is the fastest pace all week, and at the moment,

we are going to be on time to the second.

I'm not sure I can keep it up.

CAR HORN TOOTS

After seven days, we're asking you to squeeze every ounce out of you.

Maybe dip for the line, I think.

A real dip for the line.

With her reception waiting at the Liverpool waterfront...

We have sent one of Liverpool's most famous sons, John Bishop.

..Jo Brand, 58-year-old comedian and mother of two,

is on the verge of completing an epic cross-country journey.

She's inspired thousands of people across the UK to get off their sofas

and rise to the challenge for Sport Relief.

A huge element of it is not wanting to let people down.

-You're an inspiration, I'm going to start to cry.

-Don't cry!

I think people want to see a fat old woman doing well.

Oh, yes!

If she can do it, anyone can do it.

Let's go live to Liverpool now. We think she's in sight.

Here she is, coming up to the end, the finishing line.

After a walk all the way.

KLAXON BLARES, CHEERING

Congratulations, Jo. How do you feel?

Er, shattered.

I truly really believe that Sport Relief is an organisation

that just gives a huge amount to people

and concentrates not only on projects in Africa,

but projects here that mean a lot to me.

You've seen the crowd here, you're getting a lot of support,

what did that mean to you?

It was so fantastic for me to walk across a massive swathe

of the country and see just how generous and friendly

and funny and community-minded and positive people are.

It's overwhelming what they've been doing, it's just fantastic.

She did it!

I was never in doubt, to be honest with you.

Jo Brand's Hell of a Walk has so far raised nearly £850,000.

I honestly am so shattered now,

I don't know quite what I'm going to do,

but I might just sit down on the floor.

Thanks a million, everyone, thank you.

If you have been inspired by Jo's challenge, you can still help...

# Now, I would walk 500 miles

# And I would walk 500 more

# Just be the man who walked 1,000 miles

# To fall down at your door

-# La-la-la-la

-La-la-la-la

-# La-la-la-la

-La-la-la-la

# La-la-la-la La-la-la-la-la... #

Oi!

-# La-la-la-la

-La-la-la-la

-# La-la-la-la

-La-la-la-la

# La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la! #

CHEERING