TEESSIDE comedian Roy ‘Chubby’ Brown has donated £5,000 to a North-East cancer treatment team that helped to save his life.

The gift, donated out of the profits from Mr Brown’s merchandise sales, will go into the Endeavour unit’s ‘Star Fund’ at the James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough.

The fund was set up in 2010 to assist with future developments within the South Tees Hospitals department of radiotherapy and oncology, to benefit patients, their families and staff alike.

This is not the first time Mr Brown has supported cancer charities at the hospital. The Grangetown-born comedian, famous for his sarcastic and ribald stand-up comedy routines, has also made considerable donations to the Trinity Holistic Centre, based in the grounds of the Marton Road hospital.

Mr Brown said: “I am donating this money because there are not many lives that haven’t been affected by this awful disease. The specialists at the James Cook University Hospital certainly saved my life and for this I am eternally grateful.

“Hopefully my donations will contribute to saving more lives and one day the experts will find a cure.”