Sara Cox finishes her epic 135-mile run which, by the end of the final day, has raised over £9.5 million for Children in Need
She tells Radio 2's Scott Mills the week-long run has been the "maddest, most painful, wonderful thing I've ever, ever done"
Her mission was to get Pudsey (the bear) to Pudsey (the town in Yorkshire)
Sara received a boost to get her through the final leg with messages from the Prince of Wales and Rod Stewart
Viewers and listeners have been messaging Sara, "I am in awe, you are a legend," one says
Find out how to support Sara with a donation
Sara Cox
BBC Radio 2's Great Northern Marathon Woman
Oh wow, over half a million! Oh my gosh, thank you so much.
That's gonna help so many children who need help. Every single penny is going to go towards changing and saving lives and just making making life easier for families and for kids, so thank you so much.
That's going to boost me on, that total, so thanks so much.
Wow!
Trevor Nelson has just shared the latest official total - a huge, a massive, a whopping... £533,615!
That's over half a million An incredible figure for Day Two of the 135 mile challenge.
All raised in aid of BBC Children in Need by Sara Cox's Great Northern Marathon Challenge!
Your generosity has pushed Sara through the highest day of her challenge and will keep motivating her throughout the week - head to bbc.co.uk/sara to find out how to donate if you haven't yet.
Total Raised is now £533,615
If you’re just joining our live coverage of Sara Cox’s Great Northern Marathon Challenge for BBC Children in Need, here’s what’s been going on…
Stay tuned for regular updates, photos and videos as Sara continues her epic journey!
Some of the best music from across the decades to get you through the afternoon.
Some highlights from Day 2:
Keep listening to BBC Radio 2 to hear more from Sara during Trevor Nelson's show between now and 4pm.
You can listen along live on Radio 2 by clicking or tapping the 'Listen Live' button at the top of the page. Or ask your smart speaker to play BBC Radio 2 - get more help with using smart speakers here.
You can also take Sara with you via the BBC Sounds app if you're on the move - if you've not downloaded it, here's some help in getting started.
When we last checked in with Sara, she told Jeremy Vine: "I've just run up Beale Hill... I mean, I'm not being funny, but it should be illegal that a hill..."
The up-hills are the enemy today for Sara. To combat this, Sara said she prepared herself a little last night: "I was having a nice relaxing cold bath, as soon as I got in, and that helps reduce inflammation."
But she's not just been battling the rain and wind, but the issue of poor phone reception too.
"It's a miracle we've got a signal. We are right on top of the moors right now, we couldn't be in a more wilder space. It's absolutely beautiful."
Sara has been battling the elements today, and so has the Pudsey backpack...
But he's come prepared!
Joanna Lane is the creator of one of the most recognisable charity mascots in the world.
In 1985, Joanna Lane (née Ball) created Pudsey as the new logo for BBC Children in Need in her role as a BBC graphic designer, naming him after her hometown in West Yorkshire.
She spoke to Jeremy Vine on Radio 2 this afternoon about the inspiration for Pudsey Bear, the difficult time she experienced in primary school, and the importance of Children In Need.
"The production team didn't request the mascot, they were just literally requesting a new logo because the one that they had was very complicated and difficult. The public were very interested after it transitioned from radio to television to use the visual representations of it. From day one, the concept was to have an injured or representation of an injured teddy bear to represent a disadvantaged child."
"I said to the production team, 'well, you do need to name it'. And they said, 'why do we need to name it?' And I said, 'because without a name, it doesn't have a personality'. And so they went, 'okay, well, if you think it's important, you name it'.
So Pudsey was a personal connection of mine… I was born in Pudsey and my grandparents lived there their whole lives… my grandparents did a lot of charity for the blind. And I've often used them as the inspiration, which they were, for naming him Pudsey."
Joanna also shared for the first time how her own childhood experience of abuse from a teacher inspired her to design a bear who could protect other children.
"My parents knew something was off because I can recall being taken to a psychiatrist at like six or seven years old because I didn't want to go to school. I think I probably have some residual trauma and that's what is so important with Children In Need."
Sara Davies
Businesswoman, entrepreneur and Dragons' Den star
Sara! Oh, my God, what an incredible challenge that you're taking on, and for a brilliant cause.
I hope you had a good breakfast and keep your energy levels up. I don't know what you like to snack on, but get a couple of Mars bars in you.
I know everyone around you is rooting for you too, and your efforts are going to raise so much money for Children in Need.
Now, remember, breathe, take in your surroundings, say hello to County Durham for me when you pass through and go on Sara, you've got this!
Sara's Great Northern Marathon Challenge for BBC Children in Need is well underway!
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
Sara has just entered County Durham - the second of the four counties she passes through on her Great Northern Marathon Challenge (Northumberland, Durham, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire).
Keep an eye on her movements using our handy tracker., external
Wondering what inspired Sara's epic trek to get Pudsey (the bear on Sara's backpack) to Pudsey (the town)?
Well, it's because this year we're celebrating 40 years of Pudsey Bear of course!
So it's apt that we pay tribute to everyone's favourite yellow bear by finishing Sara's challenge later this week at the place that inspired his name!
Pudsey's creator Joanna Lane, who worked in the BBC's design department, named our beloved Children in Need mascot after her hometown.
You can hear more from Joanna after 1:30pm on today's Jeremy Vine show - just click or tap the Listen Live button above, or ask your smart speaker to play Radio 2. Get more help with using smart speakers here.
In the meantime, here are four fun facts about Pudsey - to mark the 40 years!
1) The more familiar version of Pudsey with yellow fur debuted in 1986, and he adopted a multicoloured bandana in 2007. The first Pudsey bear was actually brown, with a red bandana - as shown in this BBC Archive photo with Joanna Lumley!
2) Pudsey's best friend is a female bear named Blush!
3) In 2012, a series of special Pudsey toys were made by famous designers, including Victoria Beckham, Alexander McQueen, plus Burberry, Gucci and Prada.
4) And, who would have guessed it, but Pudsey's favourite colour is... yellow, obviously!
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 on the Scottish borders on Monday.
But just how big of a trek is this in total? Well, just to give you some perspective:
James Santer
Radio 2 producer
This just in from Radio 2 producer James Santer, who is on the road with Sara.
Honestly the conditions today have been pretty treacherous, we just did a stretch on top of the moors which would have been a good three or four miles I think, and the wind was just buffeting her. It's icy rain.
I'm luckily in the comfort in a car behind and currently in a village hall where it's cosy and warm but I'll be honest Jeremy, and I probably shouldn't say this, but she's struggling, this is really really tough so she's getting a rub down, she's getting a little massage and really I'm going to have to be the bad guy quite soon and I'm going to have to say 'come on Sara we've gotta go'.
I said she's just done a couple of miles on the moors, she's got a big uphill in a second and then a nine mile stretch of open moorland before the next pitstop, and just to do a little tease into Trevor's show - you do not want to miss what's going to happen at Trevor's pitstop.
Sara's just been surprised by a man head over heels for Sara's Children in Need challenge... so who is Headstand Mike?
Well, he's a local legend from North Shields who has made it his personal mission to commemorate the town's 800th birthday in a very unique way - by completing 800 headstands in different places around North Shields.
Discover more in the video below...
Here are some pictures just in of Sara battling the elements... even Pudsey has his raincoat on!
We've witnessed some incredible scenes already today.
If you missed any of them, ask your smart speaker to play BBC Radio 2, then 'Ask BBC Sounds to rewind to' the times below. Get more help with using smart speakers here.
You can also catch up on Vernon Kay's show, via our Watch & Listen tab at the top of the page for the rest of today.
Vernon Kay just called Sara live on Radio 2 to get her reaction to the news that listeners have donated a huge £439,225 to Children in Need.
She's currently on the road in extremely windy weather - not great for live radio - but it was the perfect boost she needed!
"Wow! Oh my god, thank you so much. That's incredible... The Radio 2 audience, as ever, are coming for me like a storm, she says as she walks through an actual storm. Yay!
We've raised some serious cash - you guys are amazing, thanks so much for donating, keep going!"
Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill
Three-time world heptathlon champion
Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill has spoken to Vernon Kay on Radio 2 about what it takes for big athletic feats like this...
A lot of it is physical. But actually the mental side [of athletics] is the most important side.
For me, it was something we focused on a lot. How do you handle the training sessions. How do you put your mind to a place where it needs to be when you're really struggling. And feeling tired and fatigued.
Sara's gonna be feeling that and is going to need to find a good mindset. To be successful, you have to have a strong mentality.
She's gonna be feeling this, it's such a huge challenge. You need to think about the bigger picture, this incredible challenge, and the difference it's going to make.
We will all be rooting for her! Go on, Sara!
News just in of the latest official total raised for Sara's Great Northern Marathon Challenge in aid of BBC Children in Need.
So far, Sara has raised... a massive £439,225
We're so proud of our Sara for smashing the challenge so far and raising so much money.
Your donations have pushed her through it and will keep motivating her throughout the week - head to bbc.co.uk/sara to find out how to donate if you haven't yet.
Total raised: £439,225
Sara has just been told that she has less 100 miles to go on this epic adventure.
That means she's already covered 35 miles of her Great Northern Marathon challenge - more than an ultramarathon's length!
She's over a quarter of the way to getting Pudsey to Pudsey!
What an amazing achievement, Sara!
100 miles to go!
Vernon Kay
BBC Radio 2 Presenter
Vernon spoke to Sara on Radio 2 earlier and shared a tactic that he learned from completing his Ultra Ultramarathon Challenge for Children in Need back in 2023.
He said:
Quote Message"I learned very quickly that we're not doing 27 miles - we're doing 6 miles and then a cup of tea, then 7 miles and a brew... then another 6 and maybe a Jaffa Cake."
Vernon Kay
Hopefully not too long until Sara's next brew...!
