Ryan Thomas is taking on a mammoth challenge to mark Mental Health Awareness Week after learning shocking statistics about male suicide rates.
The former Coronation Street star is walking 10 marathons in 10 days on May 10 for the charity CALM, the Campaign Against Living Miserably.
Ryan, 36, will walk all the way from Buckingham Palace to his home city, Manchester.
Announcing the news on his Instagram he wrote: "Hey guys, I’ve been waiting a long time to announce this news and challenge so here goes!!"
He continued: "On Monday 10th May, the first day of Mental Health Awareness Week, I will be starting a long, hard but special fundraising mission!
"I will be walking 10 marathons in 10 days from London to Manchester, raising money for mental health and suicide prevention charity @CALMZone
"Starting from Buckingham Palace I will finish at Manchester Cathedral on Thursday 20th May.
"The walking distance will be 262 miles and there will be nine overnight stops."
Father-of-one Ryan, who won hearts as the champion of Celebrity Big Brother in 2018, wants to help make a 'positive change.'
"I am lucky enough to have a big following and as someone in the public eye I want to use it for positive change. "The stats are shocking and we need to do something about it - the stats on men in particular are shocking.
"If one life is saved by me doing this challenge, if someone checks on their friend, or uses CALM for advice and help – then it’s been worth it."
Ryan, who played Jason Grimshaw in Corrie until 2016, learned that every week 125 people in the UK take their own lives and 75 per cent of all UK suicides are male.
The Covid-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on mental health and has increased those suffering with severe depression, and in the last year CALM’s helpline staff answered a call every 66 seconds.
CALM’s trained helpline staff directly prevented 564 suicides in 2020.
He said: "I’ll also be using this time and challenge to use my platform to give the charity, mental health experts and survivors a platform to tell their story.
"Please please donate what you can. It won’t be easy, but it will be worth it!
"I’ll continue to document my training and the entire challenge!
"Thank you so much for your support, it means so much to me and the @CALMzone team."
Ryan was flooded with praise and good luck messages after announcing his news, including from his fiancee Lucy Mecklenburgh and his younger brothers Adam and Scott.
His fiancee Lucy Mecklenburgh said: "Very proud of u."
"That's my big bro right there," said Scott.
And Adam messaged: "My brother. So proud."
And another follower said: "Incredible. You’ve got this Ryan."
To make a donation visit justgiving.com/fundraising/ryan-thomas36.
CALM can be contacted on 0800 58 58 58 and for more information visit thecalmzone.net.
