While Sara Cox steadily powers through the pain during the third day of her challenge, Paddy McGuinness has been holding the fort for Vernon Kay this morning and has been keeping tabs on Sara's journey so far while chatting to residents of Cockfield as they welcomed our Great Northern Marathon woman.

Plus, during her latest pitstop, Sara was serenaded by the lovely children from Cockfield Primary School who sang Moana’s, ‘Your Welcome’

How has Day 3 been going? Catch up below...

• Total raised so far: £1, 411, 021! Thank you!
• Sara said she prefers childbirth over the pain in her knees!
• Coach, Greg has been on hand with the pep talks and the stretches
• The One Show’s Alex Jones sends a message of support to Sara

You can also catch up on Paddy's show below, or following along via our Watch & Listen tab at the top of the page for the rest of today.

Sara Cox
BBC Radio 2's Great Northern Marathon Woman

There's a bit of blue sky which is a lovely welcome for sure, and the sun is trying to break through the misty white cloud - and look I'm going to curse it now but touch wood it's dry - but it's probably been one of the toughest mornings of my life if I'm honest, just everything's hurting.

I mean I'm used to Wednesday being a hump day but this is ridiculous, it's hump after hump after hump to get over today. But you know, people at the side of the road, people here, I mean they're amazing but it's just my calves are so tight, my knees are killing me and I just feel like my left leg isn't doing what I'm asking it to do, and it's just tough. I'm trying to just keep digging, it's tough.

Sara Cox
BBC Radio 2's Great Northern Marathon Woman

Oh wow, £1,411,021! Oh wow.

Gosh, that is amazing. Thank you so much everyone, that's incredible. That is mindblowing... I mean that amount already, just absolutely incredible. Thank you so much if you've donated.

Thanks Radio 2 listeners - best in the world.

Wow! Paddy McGuinness has just revealed the latest official total on-air, an incredible £1,411,021 has now been raised for Children in Need.

It's been a struggle for Sara today, and this amazing support will give her just the boost she needs to get through her Great Northern Marathon Challenge.

Find out how to support Sara with a donation.

Let's keep going! You're doing fantastic!

Remember: you can find out how to donate to this great cause at bbc.co.uk/sara.

Alex Jones
Presenter, The One Show

The One Show's Alex Jones has recorded this message for Sara in support of her Great Northern Marathon Challenge...

My lovely, lovely Sara, oh my goodness, 135 miles! Ahh! Do you know what though? We all love you so much and villages and towns across the route are going to be packed full of people wanting you to do so brilliantly.

And just think ahead to when you cross that finish line. That feeling is going to be like nothing else. You will have raised so much money, helped so many young people, made such a difference, and you’ll have a huge sense of achievement and rightly so.

My gosh, my friend, what a feat this is. I know you can do it, I’m sending you all the love in the world and I’ll see you on the other side. Love you!

Poor Sara is feeling the burn and has had to stop for an emergency stretch with trainer Greg just as she approaches the border of Cockfield.

Keep the words of support and donations coming! Every message is a boost for Sara to keep putting one foot in front of the other.

You can follow Sara's every move with our very handy online tracker, which charts her progress in getting Pudsey to Pudsey.

That's available now on the BBC Children in Need website, external.

Sara Cox
BBC Radio 2's Great Northern Marathon Woman

Give me childbirth any day over this pain in my knees! Going downhill is much more painful, I'm trying to manage it and crack on.

My one "diva" demand has been crumpets - just butter and jam.

It's one foot in front of the other today. It's like when you're at the end of the toothpaste and you have to keep squeezing and squeezing, that's what it's like today!

Sara Cox is digging deep on Day 3 of her Great Northern Marathon Challenge.

The miles are taking their toll, but she’s powering through the pain with the help of incredible fundraising and the warmth of public support.

From hugs and cups of tea to Pudsey pictures in windows and tooting train horns - it’s the atmosphere along the route that’s keeping her moving forward with grit and determination.

In total, Sara will be covering 135 miles on foot as part of this challenge.

She’ll run, jog and walk all the way to Pudsey, near Leeds, having started in Kielder Forest in Northumberland near the Scottish border back on Monday.

But just how big of a trek is this in all? Well, just to give you some perspective:

• It’s the distance of five marathons across five days! Or fourty-three 5k runs!

• It’s the equivalent of crossing the Peak District from top to bottom two and a half times.

• It’s roughly the same distance as London to Leicester, Glasgow to Durham, or Cardiff to Southampton.

• And seeing as Pudsey is between Leeds and Bradford - 135 miles is roughly 14 times the distance between the two cities!

Just in case you've not been following along, a special Pudsey backpack will accompany Sara throughout the next few days, as she aims to deliver him to the town in West Yorkshire that shares his name.

Sara will be carrying the Pudsey backpack, that was specially made for this challenge. It can be worn on her back or on her front.

Sara has said that before starting her challenge, she had a practice in her local park, running around with the Pudsey backpack, joking that she "looked like a weirdo... but he's lovely".

Pudsey has her back the whole way through! At least he's very lightweight...

Pudsey even has his own waterproof jacket!

Watch some gorgeous highlights from Day 2 - Hexham to Wolsingham, including some very bad weather, Pudsey in a poncho and a surprise visit from Sara's dog Daisy!

Sara Cox
BBC Radio 2's Great Northern Marathon Woman

Reaching over £1 million is unbelievable - my mood soared! I'm trying to focus on the "why" I'm doing this and not the "how".

I want to say a "thank you" to a lady called Anne. She let me use her downstairs loo! It's such a personal space, to let someone in to your home.

I'm feeling the love with all the messages coming into Radio 2 and the people coming out on route, it makes such a difference.

This is the moment from earlier when Sara Cox found out that she's raised over £1 million so far in her challenge for Children in Need.

Just incredible! And look what it means to Sara!

Thank you so much for your donations so far. To show Sara your support and donate to BBC Children in Need, you can head to bbc.co.uk/sara for all the info.

Louis Theroux
Documentary Filmmaker, Journalist, and Broadcaster

What's that? Only a message of support to Sara from the national treasure that is Louis Theroux...

Hey Sara, Louis Theroux here. Somebody told me you’re raising money by doing a long run. Er, wow, congratulations. I ran once, for a bus. It was about 30 years ago and it was hard, so I can’t imagine what travelling 135 miles over 5 days - from Kielder Forrest to Pudsey in Leeds - must be like. Quite tiring. Listen, it’s all up here, it’s mental. Keep battling, you’re doing it for a great cause. You have my utmost admiration. Keep it up. Over and out.

And the hills just keep coming, don't they!

Sara's knees are buckling on the "hilliest" day of the challenge so far.

The hack for that? Walking backwards of course!

Day 3 will conclude later today in Richmond - by which point Sara will be over halfway through the duration of her challenge!

But what do you need to know about Richmond?

The market town sits as a gateway to the Yorkshire Dales and is home to the iconic Richmond Castle - it's also the original of over 100 Richmonds around the world.

The word Richmond comes from the Norman French ‘richemonte’ meaning ‘strong hill’, which is unfortunately for Sara, very fitting as today has been billed her 'hilliest day'. And is proving as such!

The town's MP is former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who succeeded another former leader of the Conservative Party, William Hague.

Sara's Great Northern Marathon Challenge for BBC Children in Need is well underway now!

If you'd like to support Sara with a text or online donation, you can find all the details below or at bbc.co.uk/sara

We know that Sara is really feeling the pain today, but we're sure that all your support is getting her through it.

Here are some of the latest pics from our team on the road with Sara: