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GREASED UP LITTLE BRITAIN SWIMMING THE CHANNEL

David Walliams

Comedian David Walliams, who stars in the hit TV comedy Little Britain, is looking forward to raising thousands for charity when he attempts to swim the English Channel in the summer.

Walliams has spent the last 11 months training with former Olympic pentathlete Greg Whyte. 34-year-old David has been swimming four hours a day and braved icy lakes and the North Sea to prepare himself for the the gruelling 21-mile crossing from Dover to France in July.

The comedian hopes to complete the 21-mile charity swim in under 16 hours and a documentary will be shown on BBC1 on 14 July.

The famous stretch of water is one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, with 600 tankers and 200 ferries crossing it every day. 

Walliams will set off from Dover and cover himself in grease to keep warm and food will be fed to him from a pole on his support boat during the swim. 

The public can sponsor him on the Sport Relief Superswim website. 

Organisers are asking members of the public to raise money themselves by running a mile on 15 July. 

Sport Relief has raised £30m for charities in the UK and abroad since it launched in 2002.

A host of stars are expected to take part in Sports Relief which is set to raise millions of pounds.