High-flying exploits of daredevil fundraiser

THE 83-year-old father of Foreign Secretary William Hague performed a wing-walk in his latest daredevil bid to raise the profile of the NSPCC.

By The Newsroom

Published 21st May 2012, 07:00 BST

Nigel Hague, from Harley, between Rotherham and Barnsley, has so far raised more than £100,000 for the children’s charity. While aviation authorities do not allow wing-walks to be done specifically for charity, Mr Hague hopes to attract donations of up to £50,000 by heightening awareness of the NSPCC. His fundraising exploits have included scaling Scafell Pike in the Lake District in 2009, and completing a 10,000ft tandem parachute jump last August.

Mr Hague’s son, the MP for Richmond in North Yorkshire, called his father from the Nato summit in Chicago yesterday to check the wing-walk had gone according to plan on Saturday at Breighton Airfield, near Selby.

Mr Hague said: “William and I have a mutual respect – he enjoys keeping fit as well and is a keen hillwalker and climber.”

The pensioner is planning more fundraising, but has yet to decide on his next challenge.