Comic Relief 2009 The Net Result - documentary

Kimberley Walsh returns to Africa with four other celebrities from 'Team Kilimanjaro'

Girls Aloud singer Kimberley Walsh was back in Africa this week to see where the money raised on Red Nose Day has been spent, and to see how the threat of malaria - Africa's biggest killer - is being dealt with.

This time round, Walsh travelled to Uganda with Fearne Cotton, Gary Barlow, Chris Moyles and Ben Shephard in tow, and their trip is the focus of a BBC documentary to be aired this Sunday.

'The climb was a real challenge and there were times when most of us didn't think we would make it to the top,' Walsh told the BBC.

'But seeing the impact it's made, we are all so glad we stuck at it.'

Fun and games: Gary Barlow gets to know some African sports with the local children


The original Kilimanjaro group (clockwise left to right) Denise Van Outen, Chris Moyles, Gary Barlow, Ben Shephard, Ronan Keating, Alesha Dixon, Cheryl Cole, Fearne Cotton and Kimberley Walsh

Fonte: Daily Mail (24 de Dezembro)

Take That Star Helping Uganda

That's great ... Gary Barlow with Ugandan kids

EXHAUSTED, freezing and in pain, Gary Barlow finally reached the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro after a gruelling seven-day climb.

In March, the Take That star led a team of nine celeb climbers, including Cheryl Cole and Ronan Keating, up the 15,000ft Tanzanian peak, raising £3.5million for Comic Relief.

This month Gary flew to Uganda to help distrubute 500,000 life-saving mosquito nets the money helped to buy.

Here, Gary tells how his visit made the agonising trek worthwhile.

DURING the climb of Mount Kilimanjaro lots of questions ran through my mind.

Would I be able to handle the terrain, the altitude, the cold? Would any of us reach the top?

No matter how tough it was, though, you knew one thing was certain - that the cash being raised would be used by Comic Relief to do an awful lot of good.

Net gains ... Gary with mosquito net

For more than 20 years, the charity has been helping to change lives for the better and, just like the rest of the British public - including, no doubt, millions of Sun readers - I've always known a pound given to Comic Relief is a pound very well spent.

But when they asked me if I wanted to see for myself the kind of impact the cash makes on the ground, to meet face-to-face the people who would benefit, I thought it was a fantastic idea.

It's important to everyone who did the climb that all those people who were good enough to support us get to see the kind of thing they have helped to make happen.

So I said yes, and together with four of the Kili team - Fearne Cotton, Chris Moyles, Ben Shephard and Kimberley Walsh - I headed to Uganda to see the distribution of a shipment of malaria nets that Comic Relief money had paid for.

Malaria is a devastating disease. In Africa it takes the life of a child every 30 seconds. Often bitten as they sleep, the uncovered youngsters are defenceless against the mosquitoes that carry it.

I can't begin to imagine what it must feel like to put your children down for the night knowing, by morning, they could have caught the disease that will kill them.

All it takes to protect them is a simple bed net - and one costs just five pounds. Five pounds to keep a family safe.

Once we arrived in the part of western Uganda where the nets would be given out, I visited the local hospital to see first-hand the damage that malaria causes.

As I walked into the crowded ward the doctor told me that more than half the deaths in the entire hospital were down to malaria.

Scores of children lay motionless everywhere - in the ramshackle cots, on top of drawers and on every inch of floor space.

And there was silence. In a room packed full of small children not one of them was crying. They were too ill for that, they were just quietly dying - all for the want of a net.

But for thousands of people that was about to change. The next morning we arrived at a meeting point on the outskirts of a town called Hoima and were met with lorries packed with nets - 14,000 of them to be precise.

And every single one was paid for with Red Nose Day cash.

We had helped to load the nets from the warehouse to the lorries the previous day. Those nets are much heavier than they look all packaged up.

I still have problems with my back that started on the climb and loading them reminded me how much pain I was in on that mountain. All of that was worth it, though, to see the physical evidence of what all of the donations had paid for.

Over the course of a day we helped to give out all of the nets to thousands of people - the vast majority of them parents who had walked for miles in blistering heat.

The five of us had such a great time handing out the nets. I think Ben Shephard and Chris Moyles even competed at one stage to see who could hand them out the fastest! You can see our efforts first-hand in the documentary Comic Relief: The Net Result on BBC1 on Sunday, December 27 at 6.30pm, which follows our trip to Uganda.

The atmosphere was amazing, almost like a carnival. Families whose lives, up until now, had been at risk every time they went to bed, couldn't believe it. They were finally getting the simple thing they needed to protect themselves. Watching people go off with their nets knowing their lives were about to change was brilliant.

While giving out the nets I met an amazing woman called Flora. She's 38 and has ten children. When we met, three of her children were really ill with malaria because they didn't have any mosquito nets. Being able to give her enough nets for her and her family was incredible.

And the great thing is, that was just the start of it - days like that will be repeated countless times over the coming months with 1.5MILLION people being given protection across an area the size of Northern Ireland - thanks to money raised for Comic Relief.

That's what you call making a real impact - and being there to see it happen made every single tortuous step up Kilimanjaro more than worth it.

So anyone who texted a fiver or donated any money can sit at home and feel proud that you've made people's lives very different

Read more: The Sun

Video Blog: The Uganda Trip

http://www.officialfearnecotton.com/2009/12/the-uganda-trip/

Video of Fearne etc in Uganda with Gary and his mother briefly featured.

Gary Barlow reunites with Comic Relief's glamorous celebrity climbers... and Chris Moyles

Gary Barlow was last night reunited with the troupe of celebrities he led on a life-changing trek up Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania back in March.

Gary, 38, met with Alesha Dixon, 31, Girls Aloud star Kimberley Walsh, 28, and a pregnant Denise Van Outen, 35, who left their showbiz lifestyles behind, and raised a stunning £3.5million for Comic Relief as part of Red Nose Day 09.

But thankfully, last night's get together was a less than taxing meet-up at private members club The Dunhill.

Radio 1 DJ Chris Moyles, 35, was also in attendance, as was Boyzone star Ronan Keating, 32, who were also a part of the celebrity team that rose to the gruelling challenge.

Leader of the pack: Take That star Gary Barlow met up with his team of celebrity climbers that took on Mount Kilimanjaro for Comic Relief in London last night

Alesha Dixon, Denise Van Outen and Kimberley Walsh were reunited for a meeting with the Take That star and their fellow climbers. It seemed to be a celebratory night for the hardworking stars. But although the trek took place earlier this year, the hard work is not quite done yet. Gary and the team have all returned to Africa see the results of their efforts for Comic Relief and to help distribute some of the £3.5million they raised.

Some of that money is being spent in Uganda on supplying anti-mosquito nets, education and medicines. Malaria is the biggest killer of under 5s in Uganda.

Gary, Fearne Cotton, Ben Shepard and Kimberley flew to Uganda to visit the warehouse in Hoima, Uganda where 200,000 nets are being stored, and helped load them onto trucks in preparation for mass distribution.

And fellow Kilimanjaro climber Moyles, was on hand to assist with giving out the nets.

The team were present to help with the distribution of half a million nets across four districts of Western Uganda, and their return to Africa was filmed for a documentary called ‘Comic Relief: The Net Result’.

Kimberley recently recalled her gruelling time during the trip, which involved some particularly less than starry moments.

She revealed while cold and exhausted and needing the loo halfway up Mount Kilimanjaro, she had to get the guide to help out.

She told YOU magazine: ‘My hands were so cold I couldn’t pull up my pants properly, so he had to help me. By then I was past caring. 'You can’t get any harsher than that, but we did it. It was amazing.'

Kimberley said it was her sister's love for Take That star Gary that made her agree to undertake the challenge in the first place. ‘I used to share a room with my older sister and she had all these Take That posters on the wall.

'When I told her I’d met him she said, “He’s the only person I really care about that you’ve met since you became part of Girls Aloud.”’

‘Gary is so lovely, he’s really funny. You almost don’t want to make him feel old by saying, “When I was young we had your picture on our wall".

'A few times on Kilimanjaro I looked at Gary and thought, “I really want to push you off this mountain for making us do this,” because he was moaning as well, saying, “I can’t believe this, it’s awful, isn’t it?” and I was like, “It was your idea!”’

‘Comic Relief: The Net Result’ will be shown on BBC One, Sunday 27 December at 6.30pm

Read more: Daily Mail

Comic Relief Trio Meet To Discuss Mission Success…

Following a brief trip to Uganda last week – where they were distributing mosquito nets to locals – Gary Barlow, Ronan Keating and Chris Moyles met at the Dunhill Club in London last night to discuss their efforts for Comic Relief.

Earlier this year the trio, alongside such celebs as Kimberley Walsh, Cheryl Cole, Alesha Dixon, Fearne Cotton and Ben Shepard, managed to raise around £3.5million by completing a gruelling trek up Kilimanjaro.

The money they raised from the expedition was then pooled into purchasing enough mosquito nets for around 1.5million people in Africa, thereby protecting them against malaria carrying insects.

Their recent to Uganda, where they handed out the nets, was filmed and will aired as a documentary over the Crimbo period on BBC1.

In Mrpaparazzi

Malaria Nets Uganda - Day 5

Fearne and Kimberley take part in the final day of net distribution in the Hoima district of western Uganda. There's a carnival atmosphere as thousands of anti-mosquito nets are delivered to local people in a rural area of the ditrict and Fearne and Kimberley join in the celebrations along with traditional dancers and a band.

Malaria Nets Uganda - Day 4

Chris, Fearne and Kimberley visit Ruguse Primary School in Hoima, Uganda and receive a warm welcome from the kids. In recent days many of the pupils have been sleeping under anti-mosquito nets for the very first time, having received their nets in Monday's mass distribution that was funded by Comic Relief. Virtually every child at the schools has suffered from malaria and there have been two deaths there this year alone.

Menssage of Gary Barlow

Hello from Uganda, Together with four of the team who climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in March, I've come back to Africa to see how the money we helped to raise is being spent. We knew when we were doing the climb that the cash would do some good - but we had no idea just how much could be achieved. Here in Uganda Malaria kills more children than any other disease. Often bitten as they sleep, the young ones are defenceless against the mosquitoes that carry it.
Over the past 48 hours we've helped to give out almost 14,000 mosquito nets - every one of them paid for by Red Nose Day cash. Thousands of people, the vast majority of them parents, walked for miles in blistering heat to collect their nets and the atmosphere was amazing, almost like a carnival - all that was missing was the waltzers! And that's just the start of it - over the coming months 1.5 million people will be given protection in total, across an area the size of Northern Ireland. That's what you call making a real impact - and it all starts with someone like you supporting our challenge to climb Kili. So thank you and take it from me, the money you gave couldn't be spent any better than it is.
Love Gary,
P.S. Watch the story of our trip on Sunday 27th December at 6:30pm on BBC One: Comic Relief - The Net Result

Mosquito Nets in Uganda - Day 3

This video is of Gary meeting some of the locals before he and the other celebs hand out 8,000 mosquito nets.

As you can see, the intrepid celebrities are helping to distribute half a million mosquito nets in Uganda, and witness firsthand how such a simple item can save lives.

Gary Barlow said: "To know that these mosquito nets will make a real difference to these people’s lives makes me feel honoured to be part of this and the achievement all the more great. A massive thank you to the British public for their incredible and generous support and for helping to make this happen."

The team's trip to Uganda is being filmed for a special report back TV show called Comic Relief: The Net Result – so make sure you tune into BBC One on Sunday 27th December at 6:30pm to see how they all got on.
Red Nose Climb

Uganda Day 4 - Aled's update

The beauty of Uganda and the strange contrast of life in the towns to the standard of living in the villages is starting to not shock me anymore. It's no longer shocking to see 5 year olds walking along the main roads holding hands with their 3 year old brothers or sisters and carrying either large oversized planks of wood or large cartons of water on their heads.

I'm actually seeing that it no longer shocks me as a positive. It means I can see past the immediate pity or sadness you want to feel for them as you compare them to your niece or nephew back home who probably at the age of 3 was being rewarded for stringing a few sentences together with a toy phone or pram. It means you get to understand more about why they are doing this. If they're in school they need to walk miles to get there - for some this morning that meant anything up to 6 miles. If they're too young for school then they need to learn how to carry the precious water from the local watering hole or local shop miles away. They need to because their parents are busy harvesting their farm or working in a local coffee / tea / sugar cane / tobacco field.

Ugandans tend to have so many children because the mortality rate of children is so high -about a third don't get to make it to adulthood. The average life expectancy is just over 50. If they live to be old they need looking after. Doctors and hospitals are more than likely miles away so they need enough of their children to grow old to look after them.

As Chris mentioned this morning everyone has a mobile. As odd as that sounds for a country that has running water in only a third of houses it's actually essential. Mobiles mean that you can bypass expensive landlines and they can supply not only a way of communicating to each other but basic healthcare help and advice to those cut off from the towns. Some African countries even lead the way in mobile banking - not paying your bill online like we do, but actually sending digital money to your handset so that you can take your phone to buy things.

Similarly that contrast is evident as I sit here in my car looking out ahead of me. I am overlooking the most beautiful scene of lush Ugandan meadows with mountains lining the distance. Amongst the greenery are two clusters of huts for houses. Some made from earth some from brick. But then in one of the central houses not so far away is a blackboard advertising that the next Premiership match game is happening soon and you can watch it on their tv.

These are some of the wealthier villagers because all around them are fields of tea. These are harvested for sending around the world. Unfortunately the (relative) wealth amongst these fields also brings disease as people travel across country for this work bringing with them disease. For this reason there are high infection rates of HIV as well as Malaria here. Something that could be easily avoided with some simple education, condoms and mosquito nets.

Thankfully there is light at the end of that tunnel for both HIV and malaria. Uganda is being praised for it's work in awareness of how you catch HIV, and with the help of your money and Comic Relief there is hope that we are about to put a very healthy dent in the malaria rates too.

From the primary school this morning of 1,100 pupils 3/4 of them have had malaria. Some of them more than once. Only the fact that they are close enough to the main town has saved them from suffering the fate of their classmates who've died of the disease. As of today every student in that school has a malaria net.

This is a 4 year project that Comic Relief are embarking on. Enough money has been raised to buy 600,000 nets for the families in this area of Uganda. The malaria statistics will be monitored to see what kind of effect that has in this area. As more money is raised with Sport Relief they will extend the plan to other areas of Uganda and hopefully save even more lives.

Stamping out malaria won't solve all the 'problems' for the people of Uganda (if I can be as self-righteous as to call their life style as such). I'm realising that to get the people of Uganda a better standard of living is going to involve much more than money and mosquito nets - but it's an excellent place to start.

From Blog of Chris Moyles

Malaria Nets Uganda - Day 3

Fearne Cotton looks back on her week so far in Uganda, where she has been helping with the mass distribution of anti-mosquito nets in the Hoima district of western Uganda.

We’ve walked Moyles for these nets

RADIO 1 DJ Chris Moyles hands out life-saving mosquito nets in Uganda yesterday - bought with cash raised from the Comic Relief trek up Mount Kilimanjaro.

GMTV host Ben Shephard Take That's Gary Barlow, Girls Aloud singer Kimberley Walsh and presenter Fearne Cotton also handed out the gear. Hundreds of locals in the East African country queued up to get the nets, which protect against the malaria-carrying insects.

The five celebs were among nine stars, including Cheryl Cole and Alesha Dixon, who raised £3.5million by scaling 19,000ft Kilimanjaro in neighbouring Tanzania - enough to buy nets for 1.5million people.

Gary, 38 said: "The Kilimanjaro trip was harder than any of us could have ever imagined. But helping to hand out the nets makes all the altitude sickness, muscle pain and exhaustion worth it."

Documentary Comic Relief: The Net Result, will air on BBC1 over Christmas.

Pride ... celebrities Ben Shephard, Kimberley Walsh, Ferne Cotton and Gary Barlow

Read more: The Sun

Aled with the celebs

Comic Relief Stars Return

"Three amigos" from Twitter of Ben

Good Man!

Fearne Cotton, Chris Moyles, Gary Barlow, Ben Shepherd and Kimberley Walsh returned to Uganda to see how the cash they raised is being spent.

Last menssages in Twitter:
"As Fearne, Ben, Gary, Chris and Kim find out more about the havoc malaria causes - the net distribution moves on to the next area."

"Its a lovely thought that last night 14,000 families had probably their first ever night under a net and safe from malaria."

"And all because the Kili climbers rose to the challenge and you sponsored them - good work."

Malaria Nets Uganda - Day 2

Gary, Fearne, Ben, Kimberley and Chris help with the distribution of half a million anti-mosquito nets in Western Uganda. The nets were paid for with some of the £3.5 million they raised climbing Mt Kilimanjaro in aid of Comic Relief.

In Uganda Malaria kills more children than any other disease.

Comic Relief - The Net Result

HOIMA, UGANDA - NOVEMBER 29: Five of the nine celebrity Kilimanjaro climbers, Gary Barlow, Fearne Cotton, Ben Shepherd, Chris Moyles and Kimberley Walsh, saw all their hard work climbing the mighty Mount Kilimanjaro pay off as they witnessed for themselves how some of the money raised is being spent to help to fight malaria, Africa's biggest killer. The team were met by thousands of people queueing to get their mosquito nets. 14,000 nets have been distributed today with an expected 1.5 million people being covered by the end of the distribution, in an area the same size as Northern Ireland.

Gary Barlow heads off to the net distribution area in one of the trucks filled with mosquito nets in Hoima, Uganda.

Climb leader Gary Barlow gives out the very first of half a million mosquito nets bought with Comic Relief money

Malaria Nets Uganda - Day 1

In March this year nine celebrities undertook the mammoth challenge of climbing the mighty Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money for Comic Relief.

Thanks to the support of the British public their incredible effort raised over £3.5 million, and next week five of the climbers will travel to Uganda to see for themselves how some of that money is helping to fight malaria, Africa's biggest killer.

Gary Barlow, Kimberley Walsh, Chris Moyles, Ben Shephard and Fearne Cotton are visiting Uganda assisting with the distribution of half a million mosquito nets, and witnessing how these simple items can help save lives.

The Kili Team in Uganda - 3rd day

Wagons roll - Gary leads the way

Moylesy has arrived - on air with Gary on R1 in a few mins

Chris and Gary speak to Vern

And they're off - Gary helps to give out the first net

Last menssage in Twitter:
"In the words of Mr Gary Barlow himself, 'if anything makes doing a challenge like Kili worthwhile, its seeing what we've seen today.'"

Gary Barlow in Uganda 28.11 -December 2009

The Kili team in Uganda

Gary, Ben, Fearne and Kimberley flew out this morning around 11am and Chris Moyles will follow later. There are live links every morning on the Chris Moyles Radio 1 show which Vernon Kaye will be hosting this week. Like Kili all over again, but without the stress.lol. Celebrity climbers return to Africa
(UKPA) – 1 hour ago

Five of Comic Relief's celebrity climbers will head to Uganda next week to see how some of the £3.5 million raised by their Kilimanjaro challenge is being spent.

Gary Barlow, Kimberley Walsh, Chris Moyles, Ben Shephard and Fearne Cotton will be assisting with the distribution of half a million mosquito nets to help save lives in the fight against malaria, Africa's biggest killer.

The BT Red Nose Climb explored how to tackle malaria, a disease which kills a child every 30 seconds across Africa.

In Tanzania, where Kilimanjaro is situated, malaria is the leading killer of children.

Ready to roll - the first 8000 nets loaded and ready for the big distribution tomorrow.

Breakfast in hoima

On top of the world - the kili team on a net mountain

We are here. Gary and Ben gaining entry.

Gary and Kim about to see some serious nettage

In Twitter: Last menssage:

"Tough afternoon for Gary and Kim at a local hospital seeing the damage malaria can do."

"Big day tomorrow. Masses of people expected to come and pick up one of the Comic Relief nets. Should be something special."

Follow in...http://twitter.com/rednoseday2009

Kilimanjaro Documentary BT Red Nose Climb Comic Relief

Parte I: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqQwvQ6DOzo&feature=channel

Parte III: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZsfzS8V8S8&feature=channel

Parte IV: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p29ZlDHBDT4&feature=channel

Parte V: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yan-rhUr9-A&feature=channel

Parte VI: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvrB32F14Ys&feature=channel

Parte VII: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFhyB-wL2-Y&feature=channel

Mais fotos da Gala de celebração

Gala de consagração da Campanha Red Nose Day

Como o Gary estava bonito e charmoso nesta gala, realizada esta quinta-feira, em Inglaterra, com o primeiro ministro, Gordon Brown.

Gordon Brown (C), Sarah Brown, Fearne Cotton, Cheryl Cole, Ronan Keating, Chris Moyles, Gary Barlow, Kimberley Walsh, Ben Shepherd and Alysha Dixon.
Estes celebraram a mais recente subida ao Kilimanjaro junto do Primeiro Ministro de Inglaterra, tendo angariado mais de 1.5 milhões de euros.