TWENTY days and 827 miles after one man committed to honour his friend and life-long supporter, Lee Dodgson will return to a hero’s welcome in the North-East tomorrow (Saturday, June 3).

Mr Dodgson set himself the mammoth challenge of running the length of Great Britain – from Land’s End, in Cornwall, to John o’ Groats, in Caithness – in memory of John Crompton, who died in 2016.

As if the challenging distance was not enough, Mr Dodgson, from Hartlepool, decided to tackle the task within a 20-day period, which he began last month.

The run – which ended with a gruelling 26-mile leg to the most northerly point of Scotland – is Mr Dodgson’s way of attempting to raise £40,000 for his hometown’s Alice House Hospice.

More than £34,600 has already been pledged to the campaign.

The 31-year-old said: “Just over a year ago, I lost a very good friend under tragic circumstances.

“John was a huge supporter of mine, especially when it came to charity runs for Hartlepool hospice Alice House.

“The last 19 days have been the hardest of my life on so many separate levels. I’d love to tell you I’ve enjoyed it, but I haven’t.

“I’m here for a purpose. Whenever things got tough, painful or just too much, I used to look at the sky and laugh and ask him for help.

“I honestly have no idea how I have gotten to this point, but I have.”

Mr Dodgson had been joined by running mate and fellow fundraiser, John Hewitson, at the start of the journey in Cornwall.

However, Mr Hewitson was forced to return home three days into the challenge after suffering a serious leg injury.

Following an appeal on social media for support, the Hartlepool runner was flooded with thousands of messages from well-wishers and runners from across the country joined him for sections of his epic journey.

An Alice House Hospice spokeswoman said: “Lee has had huge ups and downs throughout the journey – literally and emotionally – and has become something of a local legend in Hartlepool.

“He will run two final miles from Crimdon Dene to Hartlepool Old Boys Rugby Club at 2.30pm on Saturday and it is anticipated that there will be a huge turnout of runners to join him and supporters to cheer him on.”

For his final day of running, Mr Dodgson said all that had kept him going was the promise he made to himself to wear a T-shirt with “in memory of John Crompton” printed on the back.

He added: “I dedicate all 827 miles to the memory of John Crompton.”

To donate to Mr Dodgson’s fundraising efforts for Alice House Hospice, visit give.everydayhero.com/uk/lejog17