A NORTH-EAST Army Air Corps veteran has joined a barrel of whiskey being rolled more than 500 miles from Scotland to raise money for Help for Heroes.

Former acting sergeant Duncan Moyse, 42, of Durham City, took part in Bell’s Barrel of Laughs as a way of saying thank you to the charity for the help it gave him to rebuild his confidence at its Phoenix Centre, in Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire.

Bell’s has teamed up with Help for Heroes to roll a whisky barrel from the Blair Atholl Distillery in Pitlochry to Tedworth House Recovery Centre in Whiltshire.

Rob Edmond, survival expert and former SAS man is completing the challenge, with a little help from veterans along the way.

Making his way from Newcastle to Catterick yesterday (Thursday, September 26) he was joined by Mr Moyse, who was serving in Iraq in 2003 when he received a major spinal injury.

A wheelchair user, Mr Moyse is currently training for the 2016 paralympics in Rio. Yesterday, he accompanied the barrel for just over four miles, between Neville’s Cross and Croxdale.

Mr Moyse was serving in Iraq in 2003 when he was injured. While in intensive care he contracted meningitis, both contributing to severe nerve damage.

He has had 14 operations and also suffers from neck damage as a result of his injuries.

He is determined to continue fund-raising for the charity to ensure that if injured others will be given the support they need to regain their lives.

Mr Moyse is working to set up Durham Helicopter Museum in east Durham as a charitable fund.

Five comics are putting up stand-up gigs along the way.

To support the Barrel of Laughs campaign text the work Bells to 70900 to donate £5.