For most of his ten-year career cameraman Angus Macfadyen enjoyed a fast-paced lifestyle - working on Casualty and The Bill, and dashing off to exotic countries or war-torn locations to film. Then seven months ago his life changed dramatically. He accepted a job to shoot the relaunching of a boat for Discovery Channel and was involved in a horrific accident.
 | | Angus Macfadyen (c) Ashley Bingham A&M Photography |
"A two inch steel winch cable under fifty tonnes of weight slammed into my legs," recounts Angus, who grew up in Reading as a teenager. His death-defying injuries left the former Leighton Park School pupil hospitalised with stitches in his head and with his leg in plaster for four months. "The first month I spent trying to get my head round what had happened. The following two and a half, trying to keep some level of fitness whilst in plaster up to my waist, no easy task." He was then discharged with standard NHS elbow crutches. In the following months Angus, 34, realised he was travelling increasing distances on these crutches in order to keep himself fit - up to four miles a day. He then struck upon the idea to run the Flora London Marathon - on the crutches. That's 26.2 miles of hobbling on one leg. __________________________________ __________________________________ Marathon officials gave him the green light. "Since then I have travelled with crutches, on one leg, well over four hundred miles." Setting himself a grueling training regime means dealing with a high pain threshold. "Wrist pains, knee, shin and shoulder sports injuries, blood and puss filled blisters, all have had to be overcome during the past seven months trying to get my body in some way, fit for the task." | "Temporarily losing the use of one leg gave me a brief insight into the mobility issues faced by victims of land mines." | | Angus Macfadyen on why he's raising money for No More Landmines |
He'll also be attempting the Reading Half Marathon as part of his training - his first real taster of running a distance on crutches with other runners. On top of that, he's had the go ahead from marathon officials and Guinness World Records to attempt to set a world record for 'fastest marathon time on crutches'. The agreed rules of engagement include using only one leg to run the race in order to make future challenges possible for able-bodied or disabled people alike. Angus, now resident in London, is quietly confident that he can kick off the record with pace. "When out training in Blackheath Park people are often amazed at the speed at which I go - passing comments, how I manage to overtake, catch up, lap!" He adds: "I often get offers of a lift when training from people in their cars. After a few miles one tends to start pulling some rather contorted expressions. They feel a need to help me, then I see their look of shock when I respond that 'I'm training for the marathon'.
"Of course I've been very tempted to accept the lift." Angus hopes to raise £10,000 for No More Landmines, a charity close to his heart. "Temporarily losing the use of one leg gave me a brief insight into the mobility issues faced by victims of land mines, those fortunate enough to live. "Having worked as a cameraman for the past ten years and travelled to some of the world's war hotspots, I've seen first hand the fear that land mines cause communities and their people and the massive destruction they leave behind." He adds: "Every 30 minutes someone finds a mine by accident. They either lose their life or sustain horrific injury. Over 90 percent are civilians. One third will be children." __________________________________
Find out more about the landmine charity Angus is raising money for:
www.landmines.org.uk >
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__________________________________ Ten grand would be enough money to pay for the clearance of an entire mine field in Afghanistan. Angus hopes his efforts will attract sponsors and large companies to write out "a fat cheque for a huge amount of money". He's keen to point out that he's now fitter than he ever was and is back at work. His fast-paced lifestyle now even more so with his busy training schedule. He trains in the evenings, whenever he's free, remarkably even taking his crutches to Paris, Vienna and Croatia while on assignments. And if he completes his colossal challenge, he can be assured he'll be on the 'other' side of the camera to bask in his much-deserved glory. | 
