FORMER England spin bowler and reality television star Phil Tufnell will be trekking through Worcestershire in a 500-mile hike to rise cash for charity.

The I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here! winner is attempting to raise more than £250,000 for the charity Macmillan Cancer Relief in memory of his mum Sylvia, who died when he was just 14 years old.

The 37-year-old set off on his 28-day, 500-mile trek from Hove, in Sussex, on Sunday, and his journey will take in a total of 24 village cricket clubs and six Test match grounds.

Phil, who is also a team captain on BBC television's They Think It's All Over, is due to arrive at the HQ of electricity firm npower, which is sponsoring the event, on Wednesday, May 26, at around 3pm.

After leaving the company's Bridgewater Road base, he will continue his journey to Belbroughton Cricket Club, at The Morris Ground, in Church Lane, Belbroughton, at 3pm the next day.

Phil says he vividly remembers the moment his mother sat down for Sunday lunch and broke the news to him and his older brother Greg that she was dying of leukaemia.

"We never quite knew what was going on," he said. "We were wandering round in a daze.

"When you see someone like your mum go downhill it changes your life.

"We didn't have any information about mum's illness, we just had to stick together to see what happened.

"Now you have Macmillan nurses who care for the patient and talk to their families.

"They give them information and explain exactly what's going on.

"A support network is very important but we didn't have that."

In a bid to ensure that others do have that shoulder to lean on, Tufnell has been training hard to attempt to raise as much cash as he can for Macmillan.

"It's going to be my toughest challenge yet and I'll be picking up plenty of blisters but Macmillan is such a great charity that I don't think I'll even feel them," he said.

He is due to finish his walk at Nottingham's Trent Bridge Cricket Ground on Saturday, June 12, when he hopes to arrive at lunchtime - as the England and New Zealand players are leaving the field on the third day of their npower Test Match.

People can visit www.npower500.com to follow Phil's progress and donate money to Macmillan Cancer Relief.