Fundraising highlights

The Q Trust has held many enjoyable events which have helped us raise vital money for the Hammersmith Muscle Centre, Oxford Muscle Centre and pioneering research.

Many thanks to all attendees and to everyone who has worked so hard on these events. Some of the highlights are detailed below.

London Marathon 2008

Congratulations to Candida Crewe who completed the London Marathon in a fantastic 4 hours and 40 minutes and raised over £6,000 for the Q Trust in the process.

Flora London Marathon

Celebrity Film Preview of Chromophobia

On 14 November 2007, the Q Trust held a fundraising screening of Chromophobia, a thrilling drama directed by Martha Fiennes, sister of actor Ralph Fiennes, at the Phoenix Picturehouse in Oxford. The screening was followed by a live Q&A with Martha Fiennes, director of Photography, George Tiffin and actress Harriet Walter. The evening raised a phenomenal £5,000!

Chromophobia Preview

The Oxford Family Treasure Hunt

The Q Trust's first fundraising Treasure Hunt took place in Oxford on the 13th of May 2007. Over 200 people braved the torrential rain to take part, raising over £10,000 for people with muscle disease!

Oxford Family Treasure Hunt

Dinner in memory of Mark Reynolds

On Friday 15 September 2006 a dinner was held in memory of Mark Reynolds at the Cherwell Boathouse in Oxford.

Q Trust Dinner

Hamish Goddard - Iron Man

Read about the awesome acheivement of one man's quest to become an Iron Man and raise vital funds for The Q Trust. Hamish trained for and completed the L'Etape du Tour and Iron Man in 2006 raising over £5,000 for The Q Trust.

Read Hamish's account

Stowe School Dinner

Stowe School's pupils continue their excellent fundraising efforts by hosting a dinner.

More about the fundraising feast

Stowe School's weekend fundraiser

The son of The Q Trust chairman, Mark Reynolds, took to the stage and the Buckinghamshire countryside to raise money for The Q Trust.

Fellow pupils, from Stowe School, and their family and friends also joined Charles Reynolds on his weekend of fundraising.

Find out more about how they raised money

Loch Ness Marathon

Veteran marathon runner and fundraiser, Malcolm Valentine, once again donned his running shoes to help The Q Trust.

His fantastic efforts in the Loch Ness Marathon brings his fundraising tally to £2,754, so a big thank you to him.

You can also read below about how Malcolm and his team did in The Flora London Marathon 2003.

Read more about Malcolm's thoughts on his latest marathon

A nautical adventure

Ten-year-old Ollie Graffy was inspired by his friends with muscular dystrophy to raise money for The Q Trust and the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign.

He didn't choose an easy option, however. Ollie decided a great way to raise funds would be to sail 20 miles from Falmouth to Fowey on his own...

Read more about Ollie's adventure

Great Chefs of France Dinner

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the publication of Quentin Crewe's acclaimed book ‘The Great Chefs of France’, a dinner was held in February 2004. Selected recipes from the book were cooked for guests by famous chefs, including Raymond Blanc and Albert Roux.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall gave a humorous speech to captivated guests about cooking for Quentin when they were in France together.

Find out more about the gourmet dinner

Ultra Challenge 2003

For the third year running, boys from the final year at The Beacon school took part in the Ultra challenge. The boys swam the equivalent length of the English Channel (22 miles), ran a marathon (26 miles), and cycled an Olympic triathlon (25 miles). Each boy ran, swam and cycled for almost a mile – quite an impressive feat! The Q Trust chairman, Mark Reynolds, and his son, Charles, both former pupils at the school, are affected by muscular dystrophy and were the inspiration for the event. Over the past three years the event has raised £18,000 for The Q Trust.

Perudo Evening

Q travelled to many parts of the world. While in South America he came across Perudo, and wrote the English rules for this version of liar dice. In November 2003, The Q Trust Perudo Championships were adjudicated by Cosmo Fry, with comedian and author Tony Hawks acting as compere for the evening. Held at the Bedford Pub in Balham, owner Chris Scholey not only provided us with a superb venue, but also a steady stream of heady cocktails and delicious nibbles.

The Flora London Marathon 2003

In April, Malcolm Valentine organised a Q Trust team of four to run in the London Marathon. Malcolm, 66, a veteran of six marathons, ran the 26 miles in a fantastic 4hrs and 49 mins, raising over £3,000. He thinks his form may have had something to do with an enthusiastic priest in Woolwich who was sprinkling the runners with holy water. The rest of the team did equally well: Sophie Scott, finished in 4hrs 5 mins (overtaken at the finish by an ageing dracula); Andy Sully breezed in at 4 hrs 24 mins and Charity Crewe, Quentin’s daughter, sailed in at 5hrs 23 mins.

The runners raised over £6,500.

Fortnum and Mason Dinner

In March 2003, The Q Trust hosted a dinner for 150 at Fortnum and Mason. Following a champagne reception in the Food Hall, Fortnum’s provided a wonderful four course meal, with a selection of delicious wines. Loyd Grossman gave a witty and charming speech about Quentin, while former Christies’ expert, Humphrey Butler, conducted a highly entertaining auction at lightening speed. Auction lots such as a trip in a nuclear submarine (donated by the Royal Navy) and a luxurious trip to India (donated by the Oberoi Group and British Airways) all helped towards raising a magnificent £121,000 on the evening.

Tour de France

In July, David Douglas rode the open stage of the Tour de France – 142 kms of the most gruelling mountain terrain, beginning at Aime La Plagne and finishing at Cluses. With over 3,500m of total climbing it was a major challenge, even for the strongest cyclists. David raised over £10,000.