Emma Willis, Rylan Clark and Oti Mabuse begin the Red Nose Day climbing challenge
Emma Willis and Oti Mabuse said they were “frightened and petrified” while hiking a mountain in the Scottish Highlands as part of Comic Relief’s effort to raise money for Red Nose Day.
His trio, including Rylan Clark, were greeted by a crowd of well-wishers and the Ballater Band and the District Pipe as they set off from the village of Braemar, near Aberdeen, on Wednesday morning.
Within three days, Willis, presenter of The Circle, host of Strict Come Dancing: It Takes Two and judge Mabuse of Dancing On Ice will attempt to reach the top of the snow-covered Mount Cairngorm.
The first leg of this journey saw them traverse the foothills of the Southern Cairngorms before setting up camp in their tents.
The challenge will then turn colder as the trio continue to battle icy winds, slippery roads and snow as temperatures are forecast to drop to freezing on the mountain – which sits at 1,245m (4,085) ft) above sea level – day and night.
Willis, 46, said she was “excited, nervous, anxious and scared” to be on her own for three days without a base camp.
She added: “There are so many parts to this that scare me. It will be very difficult.
“We were about to do something for a really good cause, so we needed the weather gods to smile at us and give us the best possible chance to make it to the top.
“I had Sound Of Music in mind when I looked at the mountain. I will be very excited if we get to the top.”
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Hamish Frost/Comic Relief (Hamish Frost/Comic Relief)
Mabuse, 32, a former serious professional, said she was “shocked” and “anxious” that her “strong” dancer’s legs had “hurt” during practice.
She added: “It will be interesting to see how they cope with the days of walking, especially carrying a heavy pack.
“I know the Comic Relief challenges are meant to motivate you, but this is going to be the hardest thing I’ve ever taken on… I’ll have to dig deep to get to the finish line.”
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Clark, 34, said the challenge was “probably more dangerous than funny”.
The 2013 Celebrity Big Brother winner added: “I know this sounds pretty weird, I’m really looking forward to disappearing a bit and getting cut off.
“The last time that happened to me was when I was in Big Brother’s house, and I really enjoyed it.
“Being able to take on this with Emma and Oti has been amazing. Emma is like my first TV wife and I’ve been close to Oti since the Serious era.
“I have two strong women around that I know will help me through any difficulties and hopefully I can do the same with them.”
The trio’s adventures will be turned into a documentary, Frozen: Emma, Oti and Rylan’s Red Nose Day Challenge, which will air on BBC One and iPlayer ahead of the charity day.
The money raised for Comic Relief’s Red Nose Day will help address the cost of living crisis and address issues like homelessness, mental health issues and food poverty in the UK. UK and around the world.
For more, check out Comicrelief.com/frozen.
– Red Nose Day returns to BBC One on Friday 17 March with presenters AJ Odudu, David Tennant, Joel Dommett, Paddy McGuinness and Zoe Ball.
https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/emma-willis-rylan-clark-and-oti-mabuse-begin-red-nose-day-mountain-challenge-42333465.html Emma Willis, Rylan Clark and Oti Mabuse begin the Red Nose Day climbing challenge
