Sara Cox, 50, raises astonishing final total of over £10MILLION for Children in Need after completing 135-Mile Great Northern Marathon Challenge

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Sara Cox announced on BBC Radio 2 Monday morning that she raised a grand total of £10,169,084 for Children in Need.

Scott Mills, 51, announced the news on his breakfast radio show, while Sara, 50, expressed gratitude to listeners for their charitable donations.

People from all walks of life, including Prince William and Stormzy, have been congratulating Sara after she finished the incredibly difficult 135-mile challenge.

As someone who’s seen incredible generosity firsthand, I was so touched by the public’s support! We’ve raised an amazing £10 million – every single pound, whether it was a fiver, a tenner, or more, came from the wonderful listeners of Radio 2 and supporters of Children In Need. Knowing people willingly gave their hard-earned money makes it truly special.

Scott shared that around £35,000 was collected from donation buckets along Sara’s running route.

Okay, seriously, when Sara said we hit £10 million, I almost lost it! I mean, we did it! It was unbelievable! She was so right to call everyone legends – we are legends! And the way she kept thanking us… it was just amazing. Knowing that money is going to help so many people, so many kids… honestly, it makes me so happy I could cry. Thank you, Sara, for letting us be a part of this!

A documentary called ‘Sara Cox: Every Step of the Way,’ following Sara’s journey for Children In Need, will be shown on BBC One on Wednesday, November 19th at 8pm. You can also watch it on BBC iPlayer from 6am that same day.

I was listening to Sara on the Radio 2 Breakfast Show with Scott, and she was so honest about how much harder the challenge was than she anticipated. She admitted she really underestimated it, and the recovery has been brutal! She actually laughed about how she’d imagined a nice, easy weekend with the dogs, but now she can barely walk herself. It was really relatable – she just didn’t realize how tough it would be!

Scott expressed deep sympathy for Sara on Friday evening, saying he felt terrible for her when he noticed she was wearing Crocs after finishing the challenge.

Sara mentioned her feet were really sore and swollen after the run. She said she even had trouble squeezing into her Crocs.

It was a real struggle getting my Crocs on – my feet are really swollen. It’s like how you feel after having the flu, completely exhausted and just needing a cup of tea. That’s exactly how I feel right now.

The DJ traveled across Durham, North Yorkshire, and West Yorkshire with a Pudsey Bear backpack.

On Friday, Sara completed the challenging 135-mile Great Northern Marathon in Pudsey, West Yorkshire, raising money for Children in Need.

Once she finished, Sara told Scott Mills and listeners on Radio 2 that music helped her get through the tough challenge. She specifically thanked Chase and Status and Stormzy for their song ‘Backbone,’ but then jokingly apologized to her son, explaining that she sang the song a lot during filming and it might be embarrassing to watch on the documentary.

I feel terrible that my kids had to listen to me! We were listening to Radio 2, and I got really carried away singing along – especially to Blur – just trying to get through a tough time.

Sara also reflected on her response to a good luck message from Prince William.

Oh my gosh, you guys, Prince William actually sent a message! Scott played it on his Radio 2 show, and it was for Sara! He said, and I literally almost died when I heard it, ‘Sara, massive congratulations for what you’re doing.’ I mean, seriously?! He knows her name! It’s everything!

You’re almost there! Just a little further, and I’m sure everyone in Pudsey will give you a wonderful welcome – with hugs, open arms, and maybe even some crumpets!

‘Keep going, you’ve done fantastically well, and the nation’s so proud of you.’

Scott said: ‘You weren’t expecting Prince William on Friday were you?’

Sara jokingly recalled telling Prince William, ‘You’re awesome!’ and wondered if she should apologize for the informal greeting. She described the encounter as wonderful and amazing.

Stormzy messaged Sara this morning to congratulate her on completing the 135-mile Great Northern Marathon Challenge, starting the message with, “Hey Sara, what’s going on, it’s Stormzy here.”

Huge congrats on finishing 5 marathons in 5 days – that’s incredible!

Wow, completing five marathons is incredible – honestly, that’s more than I’ve ever run! Huge congratulations to you. I’m so impressed with your dedication and especially proud of all the money you’ve raised for such a worthy cause. Sending you lots of love and best wishes!

Sara was really touched by Stormzy’s heartfelt message, calling it a wonderful surprise, even though she usually doesn’t enjoy surprises. She was especially moved by his voice, recalling how it helped her through a tough time while listening to his song with Chase & Status, ‘Backbone’. She jokingly apologized, hoping that moment wouldn’t make it into the upcoming documentary.

I’ve been following Sara’s journey closely, and she’s been really open about how tough things have been physically. She recently spoke with Scott about it, and honestly, she’s still all over the place emotionally. She admitted she might get emotional on Wednesday, which is totally understandable! She’s been constantly checking in with her physio, Nick, over the last few days, just wanting reassurance that what she’s experiencing – like the way her feet feel – is normal. It’s so relatable to see her being so honest about the ups and downs.

It’s been incredibly useful. I was unaware of everything that was happening, but they were carefully examining my ankles – both him and the medic, Ian – to check for stress fractures in my feet. The pain and swelling were so severe, they were worried I might be fracturing my legs while running. I’m really relieved they didn’t point that out to me.

I initially believed I just had shin splints and that my body was swelling up as a way of telling me to stop running. It was trying to force me to rest, but I pushed through it. I definitely couldn’t have finished without the support of the people watching along the course.

It was a dark, rainy, and bitterly cold night, and we were completely isolated when, out of nowhere, a group of about six people appeared. They were huddled together in the rain, holding a waterlogged, handmade sign, and they were truly remarkable.

Scott Mills chatted with Radio 2 listener Dorothy, who Sara had previously thanked for letting her use her bathroom during the Great Northern Marathon Challenge. Dorothy explained to Scott and Sara, ‘I didn’t do much, I just let her use the restroom.’

She faced incredibly difficult conditions to get here – things people would normally associate with crossing mountains, like heavy fog, wind, and rain. After everything she’d been through, she finally asked if she could use the restroom, and I thought it was awful that she had to ask after such a journey, even having to take her shoes off.

‘She has come all this way to have to bend down and take her shoes off to put them back on again.’

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2025-11-17 16:21