05/09/2011 - Day 1

The first day of David Walliams' epic 140-mile River Thames swim (which is due to take a total of 8 days, the equivalent of swimming the Channel 7 times) has nearly passed, and so far, a staggering £71,000 has been raised for Sport Relief (BT is giving £40k a day to support the challenge as part of the £1m its raising to support a series of celeb challenges for Sport Relief 2012. Good work!)

Towards the end of Day 1, reports came through thick and fast via The One Show and the Sport Relief team that David was in serious trouble. The tide was very much against him - David was aiming for a 21 mile swim today, but had to be taken out of the water on the 18th mile.

In the news...

David forced to swap his swim trunks for a wetsuit as his skin begins to turn blue

With the water temperature at two degrees lower than the English channel, David Walliams heroic effort for Sport Relief is already proving more difficult than he imagined.

After trainer Greg Whyte, spotted a blue tinge on David’s back just a few hours into the 140mile challenge the comic has been forced to swap his 'budgie smuggler' swim trunks for a wetsuit.

Greg insisted David change into his wetsuit at the first stop in an effort to stave off hypothermia and admitted that the water is much colder than anyone expected.

David said: 'The first section of the swim has really shocked me. The water is two degrees colder than when I swam the Channel, just 15 degrees. Although that doesn’t sound like much, its made a massive difference to how I’ve been able to cope.

'Even though I don’t like swimming in wetsuits because they’re restrictive, I just had to wear one. Even if it only makes me think about the cold every ten seconds rather than every five seconds. I’m a bit daunted by the way this has started, you can train as much as you want but with these kind of things you don’t really know what it will be like until you start them.'
 
Having started his attempt as close to the Thames source as possible in Lechlade, Gloucestershire, at 08.22am this morning, David hopes to complete 21 miles today and finish his first day in Bablock Hythe in Oxfordshire.

By 4pm, he had completed 12 of the 21 mile target set for him. With just a short break for lunch on the boat.

Five years ago David Walliams swam the English Channel in just over 10 hours.

Now, at the sound of a klaxon set off by his wife Lara Stone, the comedian has jumped into the water again for another money raising venture, this time taking on the might of London's Thames river.

Walliams, who turned 40 two weeks ago, kicked off his new challenge in Lechlade, Gloucestershire - which is as close to the source of the Thames as possible. View source, and photos...

06/09/2011 - Day 2

Well, day 2 of the epic Sport Relief challenge has come to and end after an early morning start: David began his swim from 6am today to make up for some lost time yesterday (he needed to make up 2.3 miles to be on schedule). Along with the extremely cold waters, there was gale force winds and torrential rain - not good! But the gloomy backdrop hasn't deterred his supporters as they continue to gather on the banks of the river to cheer him on.

David arrived at Abingdon Lock at 8.30pm GMT, with literally hundreds of supporters along the river bank, despite the grim weather conditions.

A huge £155,000 has been raised so far!

As for the website, littlebritainfans.com reached a staggering 11,000+ visitors today alone, which just goes to show that Walliams has got some fantastic support behind him for this challenging endurance swim.

Some great feedback has come through from the likes of Jimmy Carr, Russell Brand, Jason Bradbury, Jamie Oliver, Robbie Williams and Rob Brydon - so thank you for all the messages of support!

Tomorrow, David will be setting off from Abingdon at 8.30am, swimming all the way through to Goring Lock and Bridge. Tomorrow's journey will see David swim via Culham, Clifton Hampden Bridge, Shillingford Bridge and Moulesford.

07/09/2011 - Day 3

The day began at 6am for David (with 6 hours sleep), but woke up shattered with an upset stomach. So this morning consisted of spending time with the Doctor, followed by a brief chat to Chris Moyles on BBC Radio 1.

Water temperature was once again at a cold 15 degrees C, and as fatigue sets in, it begins to feel even colder!

Day 3 has been looking tougher than ever for David, who is falling behind schedule in his charity river swim after coming down with "Thames tummy". The comedian has been ill with a high temperature, vomiting and diarrhoea but has still managed to raise more than £200,000 for Sport Relief three days into his challenge.

There was a point during day 3 that the challenge had to be abandoned: Doctors were on standby on the riverbank after David became very poorly overnight with sickness and diarrhoea. As a result, Walliams has had little sleep and has been unable to eat, meaning he is struggling to get the energy he needs to complete the challenge.

The river contains a cocktail of bacteria such as E.coli, salmonella and hepatitis, while raw sewage is also pumped into the water during storms.

He said: "I always knew there was a risk that taking in the water could cause problems, but now it's happened it's still hit me really hard. I was sweating in the night and have been to the toilet a lot this morning. "When I heard the total raised had jumped to more than £200,000 it gave me a real boost, as do the thousands of people who have been turning out and cheering. There were so many last night I thought Take That were in a boat behind me.

"This is already much harder than I thought it would be - but this Thames tummy I've got is making the task seem incredibly difficult and London seems a long way away."

At 5pm, David got back into the water for a 2.5 mile swim to Wallingford Bridge: 4 miles short of today's target, but after a very rough start, David was much happier.

08/09/2011 - Day 4

David started off the morning from Wallingford Bridge at 7am, and in very good spirits. However, the 'Thames Tummy' bug was still proving a problem as he could only force down toast for breakfast. Despite this, David was straight in the water, and said "If I can put one arm over the other, I'll carry on!"

He had 4 miles to make up in the morning, followed by a spot of lunch (bangers and mash and toast with jam and honey to be precise) at Whitchurch Lock. Just after lunch, David went on to complete a 6.5 mile swim, in the coldest water temperatures recorded so far.

David has been receiving some fantastic support from everyone, including the likes of Russell Brand and Matt Baker, who met up with David today. Matt Baker recorded some footage with David, which will be shown on The One Show tonight.

At 5pm, Scott Mills interviewed David for BBC Radio 1. At this stage, he was in very good spirits, especially after hearing Abba's 'Take a Chance on Me' being played to the nation!

Walliams swam into the outskirts of Reading for 5.45pm, and finished at Caversham Lock for 6.30pm (where he was greeted by hundreds of supporters along the riverbank and Caversham Bridge, including a bride and groom!). David is now at the half-way stage of the challenge, with £357,000 raised for Sport Relief to date.

09/09/2011 - Day 5

At the crack of dawn on day 5, David was greeted with a black swan - a sign of good luck?! At this stage, David was feeling very happy, with very high spirits. David began a very good pace in the open water (2.1mph to be exact), which was soon followed by a chat with Chris Moyles live on BBC Radio 1 (whilst shredding water!)

After an 8-mile morning swim, David stopped at The Leander for soup and a spaghetti bolognaise lunch. A few miles on, David was joined by Jimmy Carr at Shiplake Lock for a brief chat and some moral support, along with the hundreds of school children that stood along the riverbank to welcome him.

In the afternoon (and in-between a further 8-mile swim), David was greeted by Sir Steve Redgrave to talk endurance (and even Timmy Mallet, who did not talk endurance...), and then Walliams chatted to Scott Mills on BBC Radio 1 followed by a live link-up with The One Show in the evening.

At 7.30pm, David arrived at Marlow in-style: he was escorted in by synchronised swimmers to the riverbank, met up with his wife, Lara Stone, and chatted to The One Show team live (along with Sir Roger Moore, who was in The One Show studio). David reckons he would make a fantastic camp James Bond! Sir Roger agreed.

David has currently swam 78 miles, completed 66,138 strokes (who counted them?!), burnt off 40,658 calories and well over £500,000 has now been donated to Sport Relief!

Walliams is due to start tomorrow from 7am at Marlow, and then onto Maidenhead late morning/lunch time and finishing off day 6 hopefully at Old Windsor.

10/09/2011 - Day 6

David and the support team started day 6 off where they ended day 5, at Marlow (from 7am). Professor Greg Whyte: "Marlow: what a reception, the best crowd yet, an incredible welcome only topped by meeting Angela Rippon!"

David was greeted with a breakfast which consisted of porridge, cooked by the one and only Miranda Hart, and then David was soon joined for support along the riverbank by Timmy Mallet. The legendary Olympic gold medallist Adrian Moorehouse then joined David for the first stage in the water to give him a flying start. Walliams had a great pace going this morning, at 2.4mph, and David then soon reached the 90-mile mark.

After a quick cookie break (served off the side of the support boat by model wife, Lara Stone), David's next stop was Bray, via Maidenhead. "Approaching Boulters Lock, Maidenhead - Lara Stone and Miranda Hart shouting him on from the front of the boat."

Greg: "Miranda Hart now on board a kayak: she looks like a natural - I'm thinking up the next Comic Relief Challenge!"

Walliams: 'It's been a great day today. Lara has been in the boat cheering me on which was such a big boost to me. Miranda Hart came along and made me porridge too which was a lovely thought, but slightly less lovely in practice.'

David has already been hailed a hero after raising nearly £600,000 so far for Sport Relief. Just this afternoon, David was soon crowned a hero once again.

David Walliams rescued a pet Labrador called Vinny which was struggling to get out of the river due to a bad hip.

Walliams said: "I heard a splash and looked over to be met with the face of a sweet Labrador. I thought he was fine, but he started to really struggle when he was getting out so I swam over and helped his owner get him out."

The animal's owner Steve Outten, 23, from High Wycombe, said: "Vinny has hip dysplasia and was really struggling to get out just as David was swimming past. "He stopped, swam over and helped me get him out, which when you think what he's going through with the swim is totally amazing, what a man."

Michael Parkinson and his family then went on to meet David and also show support, as they travelled alongside him via boat. "The Parkinson's join the party now. It really is an astonishing atmosphere". Greg Whyte: "We've just stopped at Michael Parkinson's house and had a chat with him and his lovely wife: it may be tough but it is fun!"

David then reached Monkey Island which gave him the opportunity to refuel. 95 miles in the bag!

Walliams was then greeted at Boveney Lock by Rob Brydon, who then joined him alongside in the support boat.

At 5.30pm, Walliams reached Windsor Bridge which marked the 100 MILE point of the challenge! He then continued another 3.5 miles to finish off the day at Old Windsor. The final push proved a tricky one for David but he was joined by Greg Whyte in the river to help him through the final difficult yards of day six. He arrived at 7.20pm with yet another fantastic riverbank crowd of supporters. He completed 17-miles today (103 in total so far).

Much later into the evening (at 10pm), David Walliams, Lara Stone and Greg Whyte had dinner (burger and chips to be precise) so they could all get an early night ahead of the 21-mile swim that is planned for tomorrow.

Tomorrow morning, David and the team are due to leave Old Windsor Lock at 6:30am heading to Teddington lock.

In the news...

David Walliams given River Thames sewage warning

David Walliams will press ahead with his attempt to swim the full length of the Thames despite news that half a million cubic metres of sewage has entered the river in the past week.

The Little Britain star has already battled with a bout of "Thames tummy" from swallowing the river water as he aims to cover 140 miles in eight days.

Thames Water has contacted his team to inform them of the stomach-churning amount of sewage in the water.

Richard Aylard from the water board said: "We've been in touch with David Walliams' team and he'll have to make his own decisions. We're not public health experts but I wouldn't recommend swimming in it. That said, David is doing a hugely admirable thing and we wish him all the best."

The comic, who has had inoculations to protect him against possible diseases during his epic swim, will press on regardless.

11/09/2011 - Day 7

Day 7 was set to be the most difficult to date. David swam 21 miles today, which is the equivalent of the Channel!

It was an early start for David and the team; up at 5.30am, and Walliams was in the water at Old Windsor for 6.30am. Two hours later, David made his first stop for breakfast (porridge and a bacon butty) at Runnymead Hotel, and then onto Penton Hook lock for around 10:15am.

The next stopping point was for brunch at The Kongfisher, Chertsey Bridge. At this stage, David was getting some treatment, plus roast beef!

At approx 1pm, Walliams arrived at Shepperton Lock, and then onto Sunbury with a good 2mph pace going.

Whilst David was swimming away, he was greeted alongside in a kayak, by Jack Nicholson!

In the afternoon, David became extremely tired and in much pain. Wife, Lara Stone, tells us "Poor David is in so much pain! Please keep supporting him, remember how far he's swam, and why he's doing this."

Up next was Molesey Lock, and the support here was fantastic. That was then followed by Hampton Court Bridge and Kingston Bridge.

After David heard the latest total raised through a live link-up with BBC Radio 1 of £812,346, there was nothing to stop him now!

He had a short break and a physio at Ye Olde Swan - oh the irony!

The last 2-miles to Teddington, and it was chucking it down with rain, as well as cold and getting much darker by the second. David is not able to swim in the dark for safety reasons, so he was now on a tight schedule.

At 7.40pm, Walliams was greeted by a couple of thousand supporters at Teddington Lock. The atmosphere was fantastic. 21 mile swim complete.

At 10.30pm, Walliams and Lara enjoyed pizza and pasta, and now there thoughts turn to day eight...