He admits he's never been the sporty type, but David Walliams astonished fans yesterday as he swam the English Channel in ten hours and 34 minutes, a time that ranks in the top 50 fastest Channel swims.
The Little Britain star, who took on the gruelling 21-mile crossing for charity, arrived on Tuesday in Cap Gris Nez in France exhausted but thrilled with his effort. "I've never done anything sporty before," he said during the return crossing. "I don't know what happened. I think it must be all the good vibes. I did it much faster than I thought – I believed I would do it in about 14 hours."
First to greet him on the other side were his parents Kathleen and Peter. "We are so proud of him . He has been training so hard and I'm so pleased he has made it" said his mum. A jubilant David revealed that he entertained himself during the lonely hours by remembering pop songs: "I was thinking about lots of Pet Shop Boys songs, Morrissey songs and Abba songs," said the Surrey-born comic.
David, who got a good luck call from co-star Matt Lucas before he set off, celebrated his arrival with an energy bar and a cup of tea as he recovered from what his trainer described as "one of the toughest physical challenges on the planet". The comedian's preparations began 11 months ago with the help of Olympic pentathlete Greg Whyte, who told reporters that the water had been colder than they would have liked – just 15 degrees Celsius. "Conditions were good today, but it was really really tough – parts of it were misery," said David.
His achievement is all the more remarkable considering fewer than ten per cent of those who attempt to swim the channel succeed. The 34-year-old hopes to collect half a million pounds in sponsorship for the charity Sport Relief.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
