THE SON of a man who died from multiple sclerosis is taking part in the London Marathon in his memory.

Thomas Brooks, 27, of Tottington Road, Bury, is hoping running the 26.1 mile course will help him raise £1,750 for the MS Trust in honour of his dad, Stephen Brooks, who died from the illness eight years ago at the age of 52.

Thomas needs to raise the total in order to enter the event and is already well on his way to reaching his target.

To boost it further he has now organised a fundraiser at Elton Vale Sports Club on February 4.

He said:“I have finally been accepted, after four years of trying, to run in the London Marathon in April for the MS Trust and I am delighted.

“My father passed away in 2008 after a twenty year battle with the disease so the trust is obviously close to my heart.

“He lived in Bury for all of his life. I feel humbled to have raised £800 so far and I thank everyone for their very kind donations.”

Mr Brooks’ grandmother is donating her 80th birthday money to the cause.

The event at the sports club will include a raffle, auction and DJ and there will also be singing from Steve Rodgers, otherwise known as Steve Ferrigno, who was a close friend of the late Mr Brooks.

Mr Brooks said: “Before my father passed away he used to organise charity nights at his local community club, The Duck Club in Fairfield, so I think that it is nice for me to return the favour so to speak.

“I hope that my dad is looking down and is proud of what I am doing, I am sure that he will be.”

Mr Brooks is currently training by running three evenings a week along with a longer run at the weekend.

“I will be covering further ground as the weeks go on and my aim is to get somewhere close to the three and a half hour mark,” he said.

“Quite a lot of my friends and family are coming down to London to watch so it should be a good weekend for us all.

The entertainment evening at Elton Vale Sports Club starts at 7pm, with tickets priced £5 available on the door.

Donations can also be made online to Mr Brooks’ Virgin Money Giving page at virginmoneygiving.com