Cyclist takes up watercolour painting to fundraise after RideLondon cancelled

Marcus signed up to cycle in the 2020 RideLondon 100, to fundraise for the Maudsley Charity. He was inspired to do so after his daughter was treated for anorexia at the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust five years ago.

Unfortunately due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the event was cancelled, but Marcus didn’t let that stop him from fundraising, especially, he said, “given how important mental health is going to be coming out of lockdown.”

He decided to pick up his paintbursh during lockdown and begun creating watercolour paintings. His subjects range from frogs to flowers, but a recurring theme is bluebells. 

He said “The feedback about my efforts have been very positive, so I decided to auction them, to raise the money the charity would have hopefully got had I taken part in the RideLondon 100.” 

He has already raised well over his target of £1,000 and we couldn’t be more grateful for his incredible achievements.

Since his daughter was treated at SLaM, he has also been involved in helping to set up the first ever parkrun on NHS grounds at the Bethlem Royal Hospital in May 2019.

He said “Our great hope at Bethlem parkrun is to help further develop the strong links between running (or other exercise) and good mental health”. 

Donate to Marcus’ fundraiser here and help us address the mental health impact of Covid-19: Virgin Money fundraiser >