The Big Night Walk Highlights!

Getting lost trying to find the entrance to the BFI Imax. Doh!

Getting there! Being there!

Getting a red wind cheater and a map of directions.

A girl called Claire telling me she felt as nervous as I did.

Short speeches by the event organisers, including a vendor saying the Big Issue had saved his/her life. John Bird, Founder,was not there. "What?" said a vendor later. "Didn't show up for his own gig? Nah he didn't did he?!"

Setting off en masse to the sounds of blazing horns!

Chatting to some larger than life vendors who sell the Big Issue magazine day in, day out regardless of the weather but take a rest on Sundays.

A vendor called Angel discovering we had to pay to do the walk so I explained that every £50 above fundraising target allowed a vendor like him to come too!

Millenium Bridge! I've never walked on Millenium Bridge! I haven't!! A man joins me and Angel and says he has two kids, A&B: "We're going through the alphabet." "Really?" I respond. He laughs and says: "No, two's enough!"

As I flag with utter tiredness, so soon, so soon....I remember all the people who sponsored me and tell myself that I can do this, I really can, I really must....

Start chatting to a co-ordinator called Kid. These vendors are allowed a set amount of magazines to sell which they pay less for.

Reaching the Hispaniola, a boat on the Embankment, our first stop. There's a bar on board and Kid offers to buy me a drink, saying he doesn't usually drink himself but tonight's special. I thank him but say I'll never finish the walk if I accept.

Receiving a beautiful text from Phil. How did she know I was so tired and needed reminding of my own determination?

Receiving a text from my mamma who must have woken up from pelvic bone agony. It was past midnight.

Getting a sparkler and writing I LOVE YOU! with my son in mind, over and over again in the sky!

Setting off of my own and thinking 'ah! I won't get lost' as I see a sea of 'Red Coats' in the distance.

Chatting to Billie about homelessness. I recognised her from Filthy Rich and Famous on the telly!!!

Talking to an outreach volunteer and going too far down the wrong street with other red coats and having to turn back

Seeing a young boy, about 9 or 10 walking with his mum, dad and others

Telling a man I'd bagged some sponsors at the Champagne Bar as we pass Kings Cross St Pancras. He was walking with his wife and another couple and had only signed up a few days before so were going to fundraise afterwards.

Discovering the guy with all the helium balloons strapped to his bag was a vendor from Poland along with his fellow vending brother.

Thinking 'what? Only 6 miles?!' as we reach some marshalls on Eversholt Street and wishing I hadn't forgotten my blimmin' pedometer at home!

Being given a sparkler to celebrate marching a 1/3 of the route.

Seeing drunk revellers outside Koko and thinking "I'm home! I know my way!"

Finally, finally reaching the Roundhouse and the sweet waft of mulled wine making me feel sleepier so drank water instead.

Bumping into Elvis!

Billie telling me to take off my trainers to let my feet breathe. I would now do this at EVERY stop and massage my feet as well!

Kid saying he was leaving, the beer had done him no good. I wish him well.

A bunch of girls slumped against a wall wondering how they would get up again which got me thinking.

Setting off on my own again but bumping into A&B's dad who I'd met on the Millenium Bridge ages ago.

Wanting to take a short cut through to Parkway which I would have done but for A&B's dad.

Camden Town being so busy busy busy still!! Mind you, it was only 2am...

A&B's dad telling me programmes about 'life narratives' helping the mentally unwell understand themselves better and thinking I've done astonishing things in my past and should focus on that.

Walking goes by so much quicker when one is talking!

Reaching the House of Barnabus which is actually a converted church or something. beautiful with little cloisters where take a rest. I'll revisit it at some point.

Being given a glass of champagne! In a glass flute! Give me more!!

Stuffing a pack of mini cheddars and a chocolate brownie in my pocket on the way out.

Being told we should cross at We Will Rock You to set us on our route. "We will, WE WILL rock you," I say flatly, out loud. The girl laughs.

Reading small, tight instructions, in the dark. The organisers did put arrows here and there and up until this point I hadn't taken much notice of them. Hmmm,

The boy I was with saying the girls in front of us were too chirpy and me saying we should catch up with them.

The chirpy girls are actually Old Boots, friends on the top ten team fundraiser list!

Knowing you're going mad when walking down Kingsway you laugh when you realise you've walked too far and have to walk back up it again.

Gosh it's so warm for a November night! So lucky!

Reaching a support van at Lincoln Inn Fields and drinking cup after cup of freezing water before being given a sparkler to celebrate walking 2/3's!

Happy I was no longer on my own for the long trudge to Vauxhall.

Seeing the invisible asleep in their doorways. Not for the first time though. Earlier one had got out of his sleeping bag and joined his pals on this walk.

In the quiet of the night, seeing the plaque dedicated to the Women of World War I in the middle of Whitehall.

One of the chirpy girls telling me she was meeting friends at 8am and going to Twickenham to watch the rugby from a corporate box then taking a train to Nottingham to go out on the lash with old uni mates. Old Boots indeed!

Copying one of the chirpy girls and having a wee behind a tree infront of the Houses of Parliament. Peace not protest...! (Although.....)

Hearing the Sex Pistols coming from a guy's bag and discovering this group were canteen workers from Reading.

All of us saying we'd walked way more than 14 miles and DJ man checking his pedometer. Bugger.

Literally falling into a guy at the Big Issue offices. He wasn't a walker, he was the driver of an automatic car ferrying staff (who still looked wide awake and alert despite working all day and now working all night)

Tea! Tea!- A spoon full of sugar helps the cuppa tea go down, the cuppa tea go down, the cuppa tea go down! A spoon full of sugar helps the cuppa tea go down, all in a delightful way! (Mary Poppins)

Must get up, must... must leave the Reading crew or I will sleep forever in these Big Issue Headquarters (apparantly someone chose to do just that...!)

Off I go, alone, but see Red Coats. These are the Wondergirls, number 2 of the top team fundraisers!!

Yakking, yakkety yak with the business md and the corporate lawyer none of us understanding why politicians and the media insist on ignoring this level of our society.

The Thames, the London Eye eh what? Carrying on up the Southbank?!

One more flight of stairs!

All down hill to the Imax!

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!
Finishhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhed!

Masseurs!

A queue!

Receiving a medal, placed over my head like I've won the olympics or something!

Big Issue boy massages my shoulders with strong firm hands. Tis lovely for fuck my backpack killed my shoulders!!

Vendor falling asleep on the massage bed arms hanging over the sides. Exactly how I feel too!

Tell the guy next to me that he should have a warm bath when he gets home and he tells me he'll remember to switch on the heating. Many of these vendors 'choose' to sleep on the street to avoid the cost of a hostel. Angel sends his money back to his eight year old daughter who recently moved to Belgrade with her mother. Kid has high vetinary costs for his dog who has bladder cancer. They buy the magazines to sell to us and what they don't sell is their business 'loss'.

Eventually my turn on the massage table. "My left leg please," I beg the masseur. "Ah, ah, ow, no it's alright carry on ah oh ah ah aaah aaaaaaaah aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

Free butties from the Giggly Pig Co! The Imax showed a Batman all nighter and a group of five guys tried to get a burger and were turned away by the girl: "These are for the Big Issue Walkers." Yay!

Sitting with the event organisers, who offer to buy me a beer. Oh I think so yes! And they bought raffle tickets for my son's winter fair!

Getting home at about 8 am, the lift carrying me up. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

What a fantastic night!

Downtown! Things they were great when I was downtown! Tough on my bod but fab, downtown, all these things waited for me!