I'm Greg James and this is the poignant reason for my Comic Relief challenge – despite being terrified of falling and breaking my arm

This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine.

I get an insight into people’s lives hosting Radio 1’s breakfast show. In a dangerous, divided and digital world, many listeners can feel isolated. For some, the solitary life enforced during the pandemic became a habit. What’s more, you can easily live on your phone – you can stay home, order every meal online and get nearly every-thing done without physically talking to anyone.

We need connections. This isn’t necessarily romantic relationships; it’s neighbours, local shopkeepers, colleagues and friends. So I try to create shared moments on my show, a feeling of togetherness and community – everyone mucking in to make something fun and joyful.

My Comic Relief challenge – a 1,000km cycle ride across the UK on a tandem – feels like an extension of this endeavour. Listeners, locals, famous faces and people whose lives have been supported by Comic Relief-funded projects will, at various points, join me on my gruelling eight-day journey through cities, towns and villages. I’m the daft ringleader, conducting the circus from my silly long bike.

While I’ll be doing most of the journey alone, I hope that having others hop on my bike sends a poignant message: if we club together, we can be so much more.

A lot of the world is geared to making ourselves look inward. It’s a trap to focus too much on how we can succeed as individuals – like it’s some crusade to be better than everyone else – without thinking about how we help others. If you can lift someone up, it benefits us all.

If inconveniencing yourself cheers or helps someone, it’s worth it. I’m worried about doing this: cycling from Weymouth to Edinburgh, making the finish line on Red Nose Day with a dip into Wales along the way. It’s the longest Comic Relief challenge ever for a Radio 1 presenter.

I’m eight years older than when I did my second challenge, cycling and climbing Scafell Pike, Snowdon and Ben Nevis. Training for this has left me walking around like the Tin Man and I’m terrified of falling and breaking my arm. But I’m ready for it. I’ll give it everything.

I’m lucky to have a happy and stable life and I sometimes feel guilty about that. I’ll be thinking of the charities that will benefit from the money. I recently met an amazing young woman called Aimee at the Bristol charity 1625 Independent People. When she was just 14, she lost her mum to suicide. The adults who were then meant to care for her betrayed that trust, and without a safety net or a place to call home, Aimee entered the care system.

A remarkable woman who has rebuilt her life – she’s going into teaching and mentoring other young people going through difficult times – Aimee will be in my head throughout the challenge.

Friends and family can be great in traumatic situations but we need specialists. So please donate, give whatever you can, so that Comic Relief charities like 1625 Independent People can continue their great work. Your donation will fund projects supporting people facing hardship across the UK and around the world.

But remember, also think about how you can foster community. You can do just one thing to make a big difference. It could be tidying the garden of an elderly neighbour or checking in on them, offering to read at the local primary school or giving a slice of your time to a charity. Or speak to a friend who’s having a rough time. Just make sure that your community is well looked after. If you can make someone’s day relatively easily, why wouldn’t you?

There’s a saying, “Everyone wants to live in a village, no one wants to be a villager”, which, for me, perfectly encapsulates the issue. If you want to live in a village – and that can be your neighbourhood, a football team, a friendship group or even your family – inconvenience yourself every now and then. It’ll make a real difference.

Longest Ride with Greg James takes place from 16–20 March on Radio 1, while Comic Relief: Funny for Money airs from 7pm Friday 20 March on BBC One – you can make a donation via the Comic Relief website.

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