HOST REVEAL ISLAND CHALLENGE FOR CHARITY
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using everything from electric bikes and horses to a kayak, a speedboat and even hitchhiking a lift from a friendly ice-cream maker.
As well as abseiling, Laura and Sean tried their hand playing the bagpipes, walking alpacas, taking part in fitness challenges and even doing an obstacle course with schoolchildren.
Their accommodation for the night was two single tents they had to pitch themselves alongside a field of sheep.
Sean said: “Being on the horses for me was the scariest part. The thing with Laura is she quite often says, ‘I’ve only done this once before,’ and then she rocked up and was trotting along on the horse like an absolute expert. I was like Mr Blobby on a horse.
“At one point a baker appeared and tried to hand me a baguette as we were riding past. I couldn’t get it but Laura took it and, as she tried to pass it on, it frightened my horse, which nearly bolted. I was terrified. Another of the challenges involved what was basically a sort of wheelbarrow with a bike attached to the back of it.”
Laura said: “I had to sit in the bucket part and Sean had to pedal.
“Where I was sitting was so tight – I couldn’t move. It felt like my life was literally in Sean’s hands and the first thing he did was drive us into a bush.”
For Laura, the toughest moments on the challenge were the trips to and from Arran to the neighbouring Holy Isle.
Under the guidance and watchful eye of an experienced instructor, they made the trip to the Holy Isle in a kayak before returning in a speed boat.
Laura said: “Kayaking over to the Holy Isle was so beautiful but wild. The weather was pretty windy, so the water was choppy and the waves were coming at us from the side, which actually made it really difficult.
“The trip out there probably took us about an hour and a half, then we cameme back in a rib speed boat. That was such an amazing experience but we were clinging on for our lives. There was so many midges hitting us too. Our faces were covered in them. At one point Sean said I looked like a car registration plate.”
While Laura remembers the abseil challenge for her Bridget Jones moment, Sean simply remembers his fear.
He said: “Neither Laura or I are great with heights and the issue with the abseiling was I couldn’t just go over the edge and abseil down as we only had one camera operator with us. We had to film the shot of me going over the edge, then I had to dangle there for 10 minutes while the camera operator got back down the hill so he could get shots of me coming down.” A film of the highlights of Sean and Laura’s island challenges will be shown during an hour-long TV fundraising event to support this year’s STV Children’s Appeal, which airs on Friday.
The programme will be hosted by Sean and Lorraine Kelly, with an exclusive performance by singer Tom Walker.
Ahead of the main STV Children’s Appeal show, a one- off documentary will see another Sunday Mail columnist, Jean Johansson, explore how grassroot sport has the power to transform the lives of young Scots. In Scotland’s Stories: A Sporting Chance, Jean visits charities supported by the appeal, including Andy Robertson’s AR26.
Sean and Laura hope the tough challenges they faced on Arran wi l l inspire viewers to donate.
Laura said: “People are struggling now more than ever.
“Two small days of a bit of pain on the challenges is nothing compared to what so many people are going through.”