PARROTY accounting rhymer – charity mountain climber!

Bingo caller Laurie Carpenter has swapped his fat lady with a stick for a trekking pole as he gears up to climb Africa's highest mountain next week.

Now the 36-year-old director of Coronet Bingo in Didcot is just hoping he doesn't need two little crutches when he's finished climbing Kilimanjaro.

Mr Carpenter, who runs the club with his dad and grandmother, will set off for Tanzania on Wednesday to join 30 other hikers – possibly including two fat ladies.

They will spend the best part of a week climbing 16,000ft, so they are all hoping their legs eleven won't let them down.

The crew are hoping to raise £70,000 in sponsorship for the Responsible Gambling Trust which provides education, prevention and treatment around gambling addiction.

Mr Carpenter, who lives in Didcot with his girlfriend Ambra, said: "I'm a keen long-distance hiker and love an adventure having hiked Machu Pichu in Peru, the Sahara desert, and the Great Wall of China.

"I've never done anything at serious altitude. so this is outside my comfort zone, but it's always good to challenge yourself."

Sponsor Mr Carpenter to get to the top of the shop at mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/coronetbingo