Lorraine Kelly set to climb Britain’s biggest boob

Lorraine Kelly set to climb Britain’s biggest boob 

This Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Lorraine’s life saving Change + Check campaign in support of breast cancer returns. To celebrate, Lorraine Kelly, Lorraine Producer Helen Addis - the campaign’s founder and breast cancer survivor - plus some of the inspiring women they have helped to save will be climbing Britain’s biggest boob, The O2. 

Joining the ladies on the climb will be none other than Coronation Street actress Sally Dynevor who herself beat breast cancer back in 2009. The climb will take place on Wednesday 29th September and will be broadcast on Lorraine the following day. 

Having launched back in 2019, to date the campaign has saved 51 womens’ lives - who, having seen the work Lorraine was doing, went on to check their own breasts and thankfully got an early, treatable diagnosis. One of the women sadly had to delay her wedding due to her diagnosis and then Covid, so the show will also be treating her to a makeover before her big day in October. 

The Change + Check campaign has gone from strength to strength since launching two years ago. Soon after launch, the initiative was commended by the then Prime Minister, Theresa May. And one of the most plauded elements was the stickers encouraging you to check yourself when in changing rooms, which were distributed in stores such as John Lewis and Partners, ASDA, Warehouse and David Lloyd Gyms to name a few. The Metropolitan Police also joined the campaign, placing 10,000 stickers in their sites across London. The initiative has too been endorsed by celebrities such as Emma Bunton, Kelly Osbourne, Naomi Campbell, Sheryl Crow and even Madonna!

In addition, Lorraine’s boob bus toured the UK educating the nation about breast cancer - for both men and women, with Wayne Rooney partnering and urging men to check themselves too. 

Lorraine Kelly CBE said: “In my 33 years of presenting daytime television, our Change + Check campaign is one of the things I am most proud of and so I’m super excited to be continuing the initiative this year. Climbing Britain’s biggest boob is surely the only way for us to kick start this year’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month on Lorraine.”

Helen Addis, Founder of Change + Check and breast cancer survivor, said: “When I was first diagnosed with breast cancer, I never dreamed that I would be able to turn it into such a positive.

“Two years later, not only am I a survivor but our Change + Check campaign has also managed to help 51 women across the UK to detect the signs early enough to be treated. I can’t wait to climb Britain’s biggest boob alongside some of them - it’s going to be beyond empowering!”

Victoria Kennedy, Lorraine Editor, said: “The work Lorraine, Helen and the team have done to date on our Change + Check campaign is simply awe-inspiring. I wondered how we could possibly top it again this year and then Helen came up with the brilliant idea of climbing Britain’s biggest boob... of course, what else?!

“What a super special episode of Lorraine it will be. Good luck ladies, I’ll be cheering you all on very loudly indeed!”

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Watch Change + Check on Lorraine from Thursday 30th September at 9am on ITV and ITV Hub
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Interview with Lorraine Kelly

How are you feeling about climbing Britain’s biggest boob - the O2?

I’m slightly apprehensive as I’m not good with heights, but genuinely excited to be doing something that will help raise awareness. I love that we are turning The O2 into a giant boob! It’s a brilliant idea and all down to our Helen.

What are you most worried about?

I am not really worried apart from getting half way up the boob and not being able to get to the top, because I will be frozen with terror because of my fear of heights, but we will be joined by some amazing women who have been through so much, and we will all support each other. 

How excited are you to have Corrie’s Sally Dynevor climbing with you? 

I ADORE Sally. Like our Helen, she has done so much vital campaigning after going through breast cancer herself. She’s utterly inspiring and a real woman’s woman. She  was doing a storyline on Corrie about her character having breast cancer and then discovered she had the disease herself. She soldiered on and has saved lives. I am in awe of her courage and determination.

What do Steve and Rosie think about you climbing The O2?

They always support me in all of the madcap things I have done over the years from being winched from RAF helicopters to swimming in the Antarctic. We have friends who have had breast cancer and my granny died from the disease, so they know how important it is for me to do this.

Sarah Harding recently passed away from breast cancer - how will you remember her, having interviewed her? 

As a lovely vulnerable woman who had no idea how talented and special she was. I wish she had been here to see the outpouring of love and affection. Even though she was very ill, Sarah still wanted to raise money and awareness of breast cancer, and to urge women to check their breasts and seek help if they noticed any changes. 

How comfortable are you talking about breasts on live TV now?

I’ve always been comfortable talking about breasts. 

How often and where do you check your breasts? 

In the shower. I check them out most days, but do a really thorough check once every two weeks. My husband also unselfishly keeps an eye on them!

Your Change + Check campaign gets bigger every year. What makes you proud to be spearheading this project alongside your colleague Helen?

The fact we have saved so many lives. It still makes me incredibly emotional. I am so proud of Helen and my amazing team for all of their hard work, passion and dedication in making the campaign such a huge success. 

We are a small but very close knit team, and we punch above our weight. Everyone does their bit when it comes to a campaign like this one. Obviously it meant even more when one of our own was diagnosed, and we all just wanted to help in any way we could. Helen is a brilliant campaigning journalist and she’s gone over and above to make this happen.

Your sticker initiative has been so successful too - did you ever believe this would lead to saving 51 women’s lives?

We had no idea it would result in so many lives being saved. I’m so grateful to everyone who put the stickers up in their changing rooms at their workplaces or gyms, or on the mirrors in their homes. It has made such a difference already, but we need to keep up the momentum. 

Do you feel a responsibility to encourage and educate women about the signs of breast cancer?

All of us have that responsibility and that includes men  as they can suffer from breast cancer too. They can also encourage the women in their lives to make sure they check their breasts regularly. Let’s be honest, most husbands, partners or wives know our boobs better than we do!

Many women have been reluctant to seek medical advice during the pandemic, what would your advice to them be now?

PLEASE don’t ignore any changes and don’t think you are “bothering the doctor” which is what my grandmother always said, and when her cancer was eventually diagnosed it was too late.