The fundraising total exceeded £9 million and he said the challenge showed “who I am off telly”. The Radio 2 presenter, also known for Take Me Out and Top Gear, told the PA news agency he was “absolutely physically broken” but also “the happiest person around” after the BBC Radio 2 ultra-endurance cycle challenge which saw him travel through three nations and eight counties last week. McGuinness, 51, finished the journey on Friday and travelled 300 miles from Wales to Scotland on his dream childhood bike, a Raleigh Chopper.
The bike was painted in the colours of the charity’s mascot Pudsey and donations are still being accepted after the event. It was announced on The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show on Monday morning that the total was at £9,254,482 at the time. Reflecting on the challenge, McGuinness told PA: “Absolutely, without a doubt (it has been life-changing).
“I’m pretty much like anyone else at the moment in the world, we know there’s a lot of horrific things happening, and I’m a kind of person, I wake up in the morning, sort the kids out, and once they’ve gone to school, have a look at the news, see what’s going on, social media, and pretty much we always see negative stuff, which feels like that’s all that’s out there. “But on day one, when I saw the streets lined and it got bigger and bigger and bigger, it really brought it home that actually everyone still gets on, and everyone still mucks in together as human beings and it just really.
