WALKING TALL FOR WEDDING
Chips turn purple to keep us in the pink
Walking down the aisle on his wedding day.
Estate agent Shaun Whiter was helping a pal fix a flat tyre when a hit-and-run driver smashed into them last July.
Shaun, 28, had to have both his legs amputated below the knee.
But a remarkable recovery has meant he already has prosthetic legs and is walking with a crutch.
Now he’s aiming to stroll out of the church with bride Charlotte Way, also 28, on their big day in July.
“I’m getting there,” says Shaun, who played for Newmarket Town FC. “I’m so pleased with how far I’ve come. I got my prosthetic legs just before Christmas.
“They’re very heavy. It’s like walking with stilts – but the thought of walking down the aisle has kept me going.
“I’m using one crutch. The plan is to walk unaided, then I’ll be out attacking the world.”
GRATEFUL
His fiancee Charlotte took a year out from work to care for him.
His favourite football teams invited him to their stadiums to keep Shaun’s spirits up.
“I’m so grateful to everyone for their support – family, friends and the football community, from Cambridge United, Ipswich and my old team Newmarket,” he says.
“I can’t wait for our wedding day. The church has cobbles so I’ll need to learn to walk on them.”
Shaun, who needs treatment four times a week, admits he has his “down moments”. But he says: “Charlotte picks me up. She makes me feel things are possible.”
In September, driver Jan Adamec, 40, was jailed for 40 months for the crash, which also left Shaun’s pal Joey Abbs with serious leg injuries.
Shaun still drives past the spot where it happened, not far from his home in Newmarket.
But he prefers not to dwell on the past. “I’ve joined a new football club with other amputees,” he says.
“And I can’t wait to run again.” PURPLE oven chips are going on supermarket shelves as a healthier alternative to normal golden ones.
Frozen food chain Iceland’s violet fries cost £1 for a 600g bag.
They are made with Purple Majesty potatoes, packed with a substance that gives superfoods like blueberries, blackberries and aubergines their distinctive tints.
Anthocyanin is a powerful antioxidant that can fight heart disease, raised blood sugar levels and cancer.
Neil Nugent, head chef at Iceland, said: “We wanted to provide our shoppers with a new, healthier alternative.”
Spuds are not the first veg to get a healthy makeover. In 2008, scientists in Norwich developed a purple tomato. The same year, boffins came up with the orange cauliflower, and in 2011 M&S turned sprouts red.