Celebrity Toyah gives thousands to local charity

Toyah Willcox, who braved two weeks in the Australian jungle in front of audiences of millions, appeared on the hit show's reunion yesterday and announced that Inspire, which is based at Salisbury District Hospital, was her chosen charity.

Each celebrity contestant in the show named a charity to receive the phone-vote cash and, each time the public voted for them, a sum went towards to their selected good cause.

Toyah, who was the sixth contestant voted out of the jungle, has well-established links with Salisbury.

She lived in Broad Chalke for many years and has been involved with the charity Inspire since it was founded in 1985. She is also a patron and supporter of the Salisbury Festival.

Toyah's most challenging task during her time in the jungle came when she had to don a pair of goggles and enter a stinking swamp to collect stars that were hidden at the bottom of the foul pond, in order to earn food for her camp-mates. She managed to retrieve five of the stars.

After the ordeal, which left Declan Donnelly, one of the watching hosts of the show, retching, she said: "It was the grossest thing I have ever experienced.

"I would actually like colonic irrigation."

Toyah, who was born with a twisted spine and hip, has not forgotten her Salisbury connections and invited the director of Inspire, Robert Morgan, to the live show last night in London.

Mr Morgan said: "We are absolutely delighted and thrilled to be the chosen charity.

"Toyah has been associated with Inspire for a long time, almost since we began.

"She has been brilliant and a stalwart supporter.

"This money will help many of our pro-jects, including the Freehand System, which gives power and grip to paralysed arms and hands."

Inspire funds research on life improvements for spinal injury sufferers.

Many paraplegics, those who cannot walk, and tetraplegics, those who are paralysed in all four limbs, have benefited from the charity's research.