JUST the thought of cycling 250 miles from Cornwall to London is enough to make anyone’s backside start to ache.
But as Amanda Holden limbers up today to begin doing just that, she says her celebrity pals have already got her covered.
“I’ve got padded gussets and bum butter, but that’s just every day for me,” Amanda roars with laughter as we chat ahead of the charity ride.
“I’d never heard of bum butter but now I’ve got so many varieties.
“My friends keep sending it to me.
“I’m completely covered.”
You don’t say.
Jokes aside, Amanda’s feat — which is raising money for Global’s Make Some Noise appeal — will see her spending eight hours a day in the saddle as she snakes her way from her mum Judith’s home in Bude, Cornwall, to London over the next five days.
The challenge will involve her pedalling through Somerset and Wiltshire, before she goes on to Surrey ahead of the final leg to the capital.
The Heart Breakfast show presenter, 53, says: “We reckon we’ll be burning 15,000 calories a day.
“I’ve still got a Saganaki tummy from my holiday in Corfu so I’m doing this now for charity — and for weight loss.
“I’ll be like Davina McCall when I get back.
“I’ll be ripped.
“But I’ll definitely be drinking wine on the road.
“I think red wine is good for you, isn’t it?
“I spoke to the Heart team as a few of us are doing the challenge and said, ‘We’ll be all right to have a glass of red wine and some pasta, won’t we?’
“We’ll be burning it all off on the road.
“I’ll probably have to start taking cod liver oil halfway through.
“Keep oiling up those joints.
“I’ve spent the past few days trying to rest because I know I will be knackered.
“I’ve had my feet up, or as my husband Chris calls them, I’ve had my Wall’s up.
“He says I’ve got toes like Wall’s sausages.
“My poor little feet, I’ve even had a pedicure so they are ready to go.
“At the end of each day I’ll be putting them into a bucket of iced water while I sip on a mojito.”
Amanda was first told about the challenge live on air a week ago today.
And while the star is fit as a fiddle, she admits she has barely had time to prepare properly.
“I don’t think getting on my Peloton for the last week is going to help me in any way,” Amanda says with a laugh.
“I’m a runner.
“I’m a hiker and walker — not a proper cyclist.
“The bike I have at home is really cute.
“It’s like a lady’s shopping bike with a basket on the front and is yellow and pink.
“Somebody once said I look like a sort of Fruit Salad sweet whizzing by.
“I’ve asked them to get me a shopping bike for this challenge because I want to put snacks in the basket but I’ll have no idea what bike I have until I get to mum’s house.
“I want a shopper with a basket but I know it won’t help me get up the Mendips very quickly.
“I’ve warned them I’ll probably be getting off to walk up the hills.”
Amanda is being supported by her Global radio pals, including co-host Jamie Theakston, as well as her celebrity mates including Simon Cowell, Alan Carr and Piers Morgan, on the challenge.
And as well as sending messages of support, Amanda admits they have already been digging deep to donate.
“Simon’s really generous every year, to be honest,” she says.
“He always donates to Global’s Make Some Noise.
I’ve got padded gussets and bum butter, but that’s just every day for me
Amanda Holden
“I know that Piers and Alan will as well.
“But this will guilt them into it, if nothing else.”
Amanda’s mum Judith is going to be waving her off from the start, with her daughters Lexi, 18, and Hollie, 12, cheering her along on the phone all the way.
“Hollie asked if she could have a day off school to see me off but I said no,” Amanda says,
“I said not even for charity, you know, because the school will know what you’re doing.
“And Lexi is at university now so on my way down to Cornwall I am going to see her so she’s really excited that we get to have a glass of wine together.
“Mum and my dad Frank will take me out for a roast dinner before too.
“I rarely get to go down and see them, Mum always comes to me.
“So she is really looking forward to having me there. And she’s excited about feeding the 20 people who are coming to the house.
“She is loving life.
“She even wanted to do the ride with me, but we’ve sort of said we couldn’t get insurance.
“That was a lie!
“I just don’t want to worry about anyone else.”
One person who is a little more concerned about the feat is Amanda’s husband of 20 years, businessman Chris Hughes, 52.
Amanda, explains: “Chris hasn’t been able to sleep.
“He woke me up the other day and said, ‘Do you know what you’re wearing?’
“And then he’s like, ‘I don’t think we’ve thought this through.
“I’m really worried about you.’
“He’s even promised to meet me at the end.
“Chris hates attention and he hates being on camera but he wants to meet me at the end.
“He never worries about me but I think he really is.
“He told me, ‘Normally I look forward to it when you’re not in the house but now I am really worried about you.’”
Amanda, on the other hand, is cool as a cucumber.
With her playlist ready to go — a mix of Abba’s greatest hits and chart pop — she reveals she’s used the past few days to get into the right headspace.
And it’s the thought of the thousands of people she will help by raising cash for Global’s Make Some Noise which is keeping her going.
The annual appeal raises cash for small charities across the UK, including those supporting mental health and domestic abuse helplines and community projects.
“With Global Make Some Noise, 100 per cent of your donation goes to the actual charity,” she says, “and it supports all of the tiny, community charities that really struggle for money.
“That why it’s so special to me.
“I’ve always said we put our arms around these charities and make them feel wanted and just support them.
“Some of these charities are so new and young and often they are born from people experiencing real tragedy in their lives.
“They make a positive impact and a difference.
“I’m all for that.
“You know, if everyone who was listening to Heart Breakfast donated a pound we would make millions.”
I’d never heard of bum butter but now I’ve got so many varieties. My friends keep sending it to me. I’m completely covered
Amanda Holden
Amanda’s efforts will be played out on the air over the course of this week, and she is looking forward to seeing the public as she pedals her way across the country.
“If you can find me on the A303, you are more than welcome,” Amanda says.
“I’ll have all the truckers throwing their Yorkies out the window at me.
“If you see me, give me a beep.
“I can take some beeps.”
When she finishes the challenge on Friday, Amanda then has just a few days’ break before she starts filming Britain’s Got Talent, alongside Simon, Alesha Dixon and YouTube star KSI — who is standing in for Bruno Tonioli while he is filming another show in America.
“If I struggle to do it in five days, I might miss BGT,” Amanda laughs.
“KSI will have to get Logan Paul to stand in for me.
“I’ll still be pushing my bike up a hill.”
For now though, Amanda is just focused on getting through the next five days. and while she is raring to go, she knows the weather isn’t on her side.
“Chris told me about Hurricane Kirk when he was going through worrying about everything.
“We’ve been checking the weather and we’re going to be cycling with the effects of the hurricane.
“I’m going to be very windswept, but I am going to be wearing my fake lashes for the entire thing.
“It’s going to be a real test of which ones stick on — and what brand of bum butter works best.”
