A COUPLE’S fundraising will reach new heights for a cancer charity this weekend when they tackle the Edinburgh Marathon – then scale Britain’s highest peak the next day.

Sidford hairdresser Catherine Cochrane and her other half Lex will be running, walking and persevering to raise money for Macmillan and support people who ‘every day climb a mountain to survive’.

Inspired by Lex’s brother Paul and a number of Catherine’s clients who are being treated for cancer, the husband and wife team are determined to raise £1,500 for the charity.

Lex said: “We are going to do something while we are healthy enough to do so.

“We will finish and we will run – we won’t be walking.”

The 64-year-old took early retirement last year and supported Catherine, 52, as she trained for the Race for Life, which was also raising money for a cancer charity.

“Up until a year ago Catherine was in the beauty industry drinking cocktails on bar stools and I had life-threateningly high blood pressure,” said Lex.

“Now I’m completely tablet free and I’ve regained about six or seven years of my life.”

The Wiggaton couple are celebrating their new lease of life through the 26-mile race and climb up Ben Nevis.

“A lot of people do marathons, we wanted to do something extra,” Lex added.

“Somebody might have to carry me up and drag me back down.”

They trained by running the Cardiff and Plymouth half-marathons and had a weekend climbing Snowdon, but they have yet to combine the two challenges.

Catherine said: “We are healthy and want to help those with cancer.”

“We have been inspired by the people we know who have cancer and all the people we have met who are doing half-marathons – it’s been quite emotional.”

They will follow the challenge with a well-deserved Scottish retreat.

To support them, visit http://www.justgiving.com/Catherine-Cochrane.