She Leads Collective Podcast

Episode 7 - Running for Her Life: Mr and Mrs Ovary on a Mission to Raise Awareness

• Mary Gregory • Season 1 • Episode 7

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Ovarian cancer is often called a “silent killer”—and like many women’s health issues, it doesn’t get talked about enough. The symptoms are easily missed, the diagnosis often comes too late, and the impact can be devastating.

In this deeply moving and inspiring episode, I’m joined by Craig McMurrough and Sarah Fritchley—also known as Mr and Mrs Ovary—who are quite literally running across the UK in giant ovary costumes to change that.

Craig began fundraising for Ovacome after losing his sister Cheryl just three weeks after she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Sarah joined the mission following the loss of her mum to bowel cancer. Together, they’ve turned personal grief into powerful advocacy, raising vital awareness of symptoms and encouraging women to trust their instincts and speak up.

To date, Craig has completed more than 30 races, set a Guinness World Record, been named a Pride of Britain Fundraiser of the Year finalist, and recently received the British Citizen Award for Services to Healthcare—a national honour recognising his exceptional contribution to health awareness and education.

This episode is a call to action: to talk more openly about women’s health, to listen more closely to our bodies, and to support those turning their pain into purpose.

To learn more or donate: www.ovacome.org.uk

Connect with Craig -  LinkedIn -https://www.linkedin.com/in/craigmcmurrough/ 

                                       Instagram cpt_mc

Connect with Sarah - LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-fritchley/


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✨ Produced by Mary Gregory Leadership Coaching

SPEAKER_02:

Hello and welcome to She Leads Collective podcast. I'm Mary Gregory and I'm so glad you're here. This podcast is a space for honest conversations about what it really means to lead as a woman today and how we can all show up with more courage, care and clarity. You'll hear from inspiring women, powerful allies and bold truth tellers who are changing the game, not by playing tougher, but by leading smarter, softer and stronger. Hello and welcome to today's episode of the She Leads Collective podcast. And today we're going to be talking about women's health and women's health issue that doesn't actually get much airtime. We've all been taught to check for lumps and to spot early signs of breast cancer. But how many of us know the early warning signs of ovarian cancer? Well, my guests today are on a mission to change that. I'm joined by two remarkable people whose humour, energy and determination are saving lives by running marathons dressed as giant ovaries. Craig McMurrah and Sarah Fritchley, better known as Mr and Mrs Overy, are passionate fundraisers for the ovarian cancer Thank you. wearing six foot ovary suits. I don't know how they even managed to run in those, but together, Craig and Sarah are not only breaking records. Craig ran the London Marathon in a costume and became a world record, a Guinness world record holder, no less. They're also breaking the silence around cancer that affects thousands of women each year. They've raised tens of thousands of pounds, been recognised by the Pride of Britain Awards and brought joy and crucial knowledge to countless communities across the UK. So let's meet the marvellous duo on a mission. Mr and Mrs Overy, welcome Craig and Sarah. It's so good to have you here. Hi. Hi Sarah. Hello Mary. Hello Craig. Thank you for giving up your time and coming to talk to me today. I'm so grateful.

SPEAKER_00:

No problem. It's our pleasure.

SPEAKER_02:

So, Craig, let's start with you, shall we? Can you just take us back to when your sister Cheryl first started feeling unwell?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. So we're going back nearly nine years. In fact, it is nine years to this month. Cheryl had a very busy job. She was a speech therapist for the NHS, a youngish mother with two young kids, husband. quite a very active life. And in the sort of spring of 2016, she started feeling very fatigued And, you know, quite lethargic. She put it down to a busy job. You know, she was still very active, you know, with the kids, you know, long walks and bike rides and that kind of thing. But would often seek some respite at weekends, actually at my parents' place in Warwickshire to kind of escape the challenges of a busy working weekend. And sometimes, you know, obviously challenges with young children. So she did see the GP once. and was misdiagnosed, it turned out, with fibroids. So there was no immediate panic. Fibroids, you know, many folks go through it and, you know, are okay. But she actually didn't get any better. In fact, you know, quite aggressively got a lot worse. And the very short version is she went into hospital when a medical professional said, realized that something sinister was going on and she was tested and they discovered she had a very advanced stage of ovarian cancer and she sadly didn't come out of the hospital and it was only a period of three weeks really from that sort of fibroids misdiagnosis into her departure so yeah obviously devastated the entire family my mum and dad never got over it and We lost my dad earlier this year. My mum's got advanced dementia, all of which I'm sure have been triggered by the trauma of losing their daughter. And of course, Cheryl's kids.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah. And how old was she at the time?

SPEAKER_00:

Forty three. Wow. So a young age and people younger do get ovarian cancer. Obviously, it's quite indiscriminate.

SPEAKER_02:

Yes, yes. I'm so sorry to hear that and just how quickly it all happened. It sounds so shocking and traumatising for the whole family. Yeah. I also wonder, you know, it could easily be misdiagnosed. I mean, they misdiagnosed of fibroids, but also perimenopause. I'm just thinking as a young woman, I might have thought, oh, maybe it's just my perimenopause. I'm starting to feel lethargic. But this was definitely something more sinister

SPEAKER_00:

going on for her. Yeah, yeah. And I know we'll talk about some of the early signs and symptoms, but, you know, and I for a long time was, you know, kept trying to, you know, find out why GP, the GP in question didn't uncover this, why we didn't get a second opinion. And yeah, I think because some of those early symptoms were quite subtle, fatigue is quite a disabling aspect, isn't it? But being aware of these early signs and symptoms is really a mission that Mrs. Overy now and I are on in terms of educating men and women around the country as much as we can.

SPEAKER_02:

Yes. And how did losing Cheryl change the way you view women's health and the importance of early awareness?

SPEAKER_00:

Well, I've been supporting various charities prior to Cheryl's death, actually, British Heart Foundation, Breast Cancer Now. So I was already kind of in that mindset of Supporting other people, I think it's right to give back and raise funds particularly. And for me now, this is, you know, some... well, it brought a huge amount of coping mechanism around dealing with the immediate grief of Cheryl's loss.

SPEAKER_04:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

But this idea of campaigning and spreading awareness and on a, let's say, a mission, the mission of us ovaries to get out there and to educate. And I've, even in the last few months, stood in front, we both have stood in front of audiences and they've There are some misconceptions, which we'll talk about around this cancer. So where we can change attitudes and mindsets and inform is a great thing. And we know... And you already talked about the runs that we've done and Sarah's run with me in marathons also. Folks have read the symptoms that are on the back of these big ovaries and have told us, wow, you know, I went and sought some advice because I recognised, you know, early presentations of these and they may follow up with us and say, do you know what? It saved our lives.

SPEAKER_02:

That is fantastic. So you're really making, what I hear there is you're honouring Cheryl's memory, but you're also really making a difference to other women and their lives as well.

SPEAKER_00:

Fantastic. And by the way, you know, you won't forget seeing two giant ovaries running in the London Marathon or the Great North Run, Great South Run, wherever we happen to be. You probably won't forget the day you met two giant ovaries with their bright pink fallopian tubes.

SPEAKER_02:

Yes, yes. Very difficult to brush that memory from your

SPEAKER_00:

memory. I love the Newcastle folk always greet the ovaries. With huge fun and

SPEAKER_02:

joy. And it's always a great pleasure to run in that part of the world. and your mum was diagnosed as well. So tell us a bit more about your story.

SPEAKER_05:

Yeah, absolutely. I mean, prior to my mum's diagnosis and my own, Craig and I had already struck up this running relationship and already started to run lots of shorter races and then building up to the marathon and so on um but what happened in 2021 was that sadly I lost my mum to a late stage colorectal cancer diagnosis um so this all started in 2019 and despite mum's considerable number of GP visits you know presenting her symptoms um And the waters were muddied somewhat by a negative screening. So the poo in the post that we're all familiar with starts as a screening program. You know, that's not foolproof. There can still be false negatives. So mum was therefore, as a consequence of that, not referred early enough for a colonoscopy. And when she did go for a colonoscopy, unfortunately, it was found quite a late advanced stage. So despite the neoadjuvant chemotherapy and intended surgery, COVID then hit in 2020 and so many factors, you know, basically meant mum wasn't getting the treatment that she should have had, but primarily the early treatment would have been a very, very different outcome. Yes. Yes. So that was, you know, very difficult period for me. And I continued to run with Craig regarding ovarian cancer. And then in 2022, at the age of 46, I discovered a breast lump. Now, breast cancer doesn't run in my family, but you know, again, I wanted to immediately have this looked at. So the very next day I went to the GP, two days later, I was having a biopsy and I really pushed for this to be done as quickly as possible because knowing that If it's a cancer, it needs to be treated as early as possible. So I then went through surgery, several surgeries thereafter. Unfortunately, touch wood, I'm now in the clear.

SPEAKER_02:

That is a relief. I really hear that. I'm sorry to hear about the loss of your mother, but also from learning through her experience, you were able to push for what you needed. And thankfully, you've now got the clear. Yeah,

SPEAKER_05:

and absolutely. I talk about my diagnosis and mum's diagnosis with everyone because I think it's education is absolutely key. And in fact, you know, I've had friends that, you know, if it can happen to you, then, you know, there's this misconception that if you're relatively fit and healthy and young, and it's not a familial predisposition that, oh, it's not going to happen to me. And I think, you know, you have to be aware that of course it does. And breast cancer in particular is very prevalent. I mean, ovarian cancer is less prevalent, but it's still, you know, it's still one of the most lethal gynecological cancers. 7,000 people are diagnosed in the UK per year that's not a small number

SPEAKER_02:

yeah yeah that is not a small number at all and i think what i i find challenging from having spoken to you both in preparation for this call is that it's a silent killer that with breast cancer you can examine your breasts and feel for lumps but with ovarian cancer you don't necessarily get that option you don't necessarily know what's happening

SPEAKER_05:

Absolutely. I mean, there's no screening program in place in the UK for ovarian cancer. We're all aware of screening programs beyond the age of 50. So we have our mammograms for breast cancer awareness. Also for cervical cancer, we have the smear tests that are done from a very young age. So they're great. global screening programs that have saved millions of lives. For ovarian cancer, unfortunately, the scientific world hasn't detected an appropriate method for screening on a sort of population basis. There is a marker of ovarian cancer called CA125, which is oftentimes, along with abdominal or pelvic ultrasound, used to diagnose ovarian cancer, but it's not appropriate to be used as a screening. So it's important to be very vigilant of any signs

SPEAKER_02:

and symptoms. So speaking of signs and symptoms, then let's move on then, because both of you, when you run, I mean, and these costumes must weigh a ton. I mean, I'm in awe of you doing a marathon in the first place let alone wearing a great 18 pounds oh my goodness that's about how much weight i need to lose craig

SPEAKER_00:

when it's wet when it's wet probably flexes up to about 15 you know because it's it's foam based right these costumes so of course they absorb the the rain if it is right so right oh my goodness and we're running with buckets as well that people if yeah of course because you're collecting money you're collecting money as you're going to take heart We take cards as well, of course, and QR codes if anybody needs to know that.

SPEAKER_02:

So, well, that's handy. You're remarkably resilient to just do those marathons, wearing those costumes, carrying buckets of money as well as you run along. But on the back of your costumes, you have the B-E-A-T, which obviously spells beat, but that stands for the symptoms that people need to be watching out for. So can you explain a bit more about what that means?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. So B is for bloating. That doesn't come and go. Often we all experience a bit of bloating from time to time, but this bloating would... you know, kind of hang around, if you will. E is eating difficulty, feeling full quickly, you know, on, on, you know, first couple of bites and feeling full. A, any abdominal or pelvic pain. Yes. As recurring. And the T in beat is for any changes in toilet habits or urination or indeed bowel habits. So any of those, you know, if they're presenting together, then, you know, get yourself to the GP. Phone, overcome. They've got a helpline and they are clearly medically aware. And, you know, that could give you a second opinion. There are, you know, lots of places to reach out to, but that BEAT acronym is really important.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay. That was a great explanation, Craig. So let me go on to the next question. Sarah, so why do you think ovarian cancer doesn't get the same airtime or fundraising attention as other female cancers, such as breast cancer?

SPEAKER_05:

Well I actually believe that it's the root the root reason for that is actually because we can't ask people to examine themselves because we can say to women examine your breasts and because there's a screening program associated with it and we can tell young women make sure you go for your cervical screening we can provide that message and I think the difficulty with ovarian cancer is that how do we provide a message to tell women to be vigilant when that when it's, what are you being vigilant for? And there's no associated screening program. Coupled with the fact it is less common, but nonetheless, for that reason in itself, Craig and I believe that we need to therefore push the exposure of ovarian cancer out there into the general populace because, you know, because it's not screened for, you know, the net is not there to catch it very easily. And it's entirely treatable when caught in a very early stage through surgery and chemotherapy. So I think really pushing the BEAT acronym and not just the BEAT acronym, but also really saying to the individual women out there to say, if at first, know you present with upon initial presentation to your to your gp that's the first step but don't accept it if it's dismissed if you're asked to come back in six months or it's or if you don't feel something is right really be tenacious in pushing for that secondary step of having that diagnostic workup because ca125 tests and ultrasound abdominal ultrasounds are pretty you know, non-invasive, easy tests to do, and it could work out or demonstrate. So I think that it's really important to really advocate for yourself and push yourself. So I think that's the reason why it's not quite so easy to promote, if you like, from a medical perspective.

SPEAKER_02:

Yes, yes. So if you notice the bloating, if you notice that you're feeling full quickly, if you're having any abdominal issues, And what's the T again? What's the final? Changes

SPEAKER_00:

in toilet habits.

SPEAKER_02:

Right, okay, yes. So your stools start changing or you're getting an upset tummy. Oh, right, of course, urine as well. Yeah, very, very good. So any of those keep persisting until you get the tests that you need for diagnosis. Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

And we're also, as our campaign has grown, arms and legs, if I may say, or we've expanded our footprint. We are looking to challenge lobby parliament. We want to see government and policy change or changes made. you know, mandatory screening of, of everything that, you know, Sarah's just so eloquently been describing.

SPEAKER_04:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

You know, that's, that's gotta be the future. That's gotta be where, you know, we, we push this.

SPEAKER_04:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

So it's educating the general population, but it's making those changes, you know, deep within the, you know, the medical policy as

SPEAKER_02:

well. Yes. So, I mean, I find it remarkable because you've already raised the profile of the cancer already and, you know, overcome. I keep calling it overcome. It's overcome, which is a great way, much better way of phrasing it. Overcome is the charity. And you have raised the profile already by running in these six foot ovary costumes. It's pretty unforgettable. What kind of reactions do you get from people? Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Well, you know, they love us in the Northeast. I think they look forward to the ovaries coming back every year. Right, okay. But it's often smiles. And, you know, from young kids to older folk, they can't help but often just it brings a smile to people's faces. Sometimes astonishment. Yes. You know, what's that coming over the hill kind of moment. And we have had some rather bizarre suggestions. Penguins, I think. Oh, no, pelicans at one point. Easter eggs. You know, also. Yes. Yeah. Which, of course, we always say you need to have gone to a biology lesson. Yes. I

SPEAKER_02:

don't get the penguins. I could appreciate maybe the pelicans and certainly the Easter eggs. Yes. And Craig

SPEAKER_05:

is persistent in seeking a uterus to join us as the third. Oh, right. But we unsuccessfully thus far.

SPEAKER_00:

I try to rope somebody in on every race that we get into and there's never any takers sadly but I would say as well Mary not just running events you know we we tend to coincide if we're going to an event just say like the Bath Half Marathon which you know typically these events are on Sundays so Saturday we'll we'll rock up to the the town or city in question with permission we'll get out in the in the town centres or city centres you know shopping centres wherever malls and give information cards out so and it's part of a conversation yes and you know not only is that really helpful for us in terms of getting cash for the charity but again it's it's reaching that audience and if we can get into you know local press or media coverage and they've all you know the crowds have already heard about oh yeah we heard about your ovaries on the air on the radio or um we read it in the newspaper then there's a crowd that's expecting to see us and you know that uh that makes it all the more worthwhile yes and it it gives us that platform to to spread our awareness and you know what we have a lot of fun doing it as well don't we

SPEAKER_05:

absolutely and we you know what sometimes we comment at the end of the race that our jaws ache more than our legs because we're smiling and laughing so much because yeah the audience and you know it's a wonderful feeling for the two of us as well because we get this absolutely fantastic feedback and so that spurs us on further and further and we're always trying to think of new and unusual ways of projecting that message

SPEAKER_02:

yes And what do you think has been the most rewarding and surprising part of the journey so far, as well as having aching jaws? That sounds pretty surprising because I would expect to have aching legs, but aching jaws. What else has been surprising?

SPEAKER_00:

Well, I think rewarding, and I kind of referred to this already, but you can't underestimate when I've read on maybe a Facebook post of a marathon group I'm part of and somebody said, oh, you saved my life. Yeah. The both of you saved my life and that, you know, you can't actually ask for more than that. I went to a doctor and they don't always elaborate.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Sometimes people do and say, actually, you know, as I said before, I have these symptoms and I, That was just bugging me. Yes. You know, kind of had a moment of clarity running in Portsmouth behind you because nobody likes to be overtaken by two ovaries.

SPEAKER_04:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

And then, you know, I went and got seen and that's, you know, all of the reason why we do it. That is, yeah.

UNKNOWN:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05:

Yeah, I would agree completely, Craig. That's exactly what I would have said. Even just one person coming to tell us their story and how we could have made that vital difference is just so, such a great feeling to, you know, the work is done, but we want to continue that. And, you know, we want to, you know, we want to be like those, the posters on the back of toilet doors that tell you, you know, about the signs and symptoms of bowel cancer. We want, you know, we want the same effect with ovarian cancer, we want also to consider, you know, how could schools educate more? Educating from a young age, not just targeting an audience that may have already had those signs and symptoms. So education

SPEAKER_00:

is

SPEAKER_05:

key.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. And, and, you know, gynecologists who are running alongside us or nurses want to have selfies with it during the race, you know, take a quick video. And there's always, you'd love to think that there was opportunities to go and talk to their colleagues, you know, in their appropriate hospitals and that kind of thing. Surprising moment was traveling on a certain railway company and I can't mention them. And they tried to charge us extra tickets for our tour. You're kidding. Can you believe it? Yeah. So, and we said, really? We'd rather run there. Might have been to Bristol, I think, at

SPEAKER_02:

the time. I hope they withdrew. They did. Thank goodness for that. Okay, so some remarkable stories. You are definitely making a difference when you hear people saying I wouldn't have got checked if I hadn't seen you running in those costumes and you've saved my life. Incredible. Let's think about, you've touched already a bit on the system that is holding things in place and maybe stopping progress that we need to see happening. Often as women, we are educated and socialised to push through feeling tired and to push through any discomfort that we might have. How do you think we can go about changing that narrative?

SPEAKER_05:

Well, I think I think To the points we've mentioned earlier, that not accepting not feeling good is important. And actually, if it is something that can't be treated easily, as women, we just need to know what we're dealing with, I think. So obviously, the first line of action is to rule out anything sinister. which you hope to achieve, but also not to feel embarrassed or, you know, or feeble or weak to, to say, you know, I'm not happy to be living my life like this feeling like I do. So it's, it is that fear. I mean, I know, like you've mentioned that the menopause and signs and symptoms and feeling fatigue and often are very, very similar. And it's great to hear that there are a lot of action groups now addressing that saying, yes, you should not feel that that's acceptable if it's having an impact on your quality of life so i think women for all sorts of reasons um are feeling more empowered to address that and go to their gp um but of course we're not there yet i think there's there's still that dogma of of accepting that it's perhaps a part of your life that you just need to push through um but everybody has their tipping point and i think that's what's important to establish what's normal for you um of what what is and and then and and just to as i say just be tenacious yes you know and just feel brave to you know doctors of course they do a great job but they don't know you and your how you feel and you know your own baseline and you know how you're feeling today and that it's not right so therefore let's let's address this in the best most expeditious way

SPEAKER_02:

Yes, excellent. Thank you. And when it comes to role models, you're both kind of allies to this cause, to making sure that awareness is raised around cancer of the ovaries. How do you think more allies can play a role in championing women's health more broadly? I

SPEAKER_00:

think stay informed, have confidence, have a perspective, a point of view. Clearly in both of our cases, we have a personal connection and that's key drivers for us both. And I think for kind of slightly different reasons, Sarah and I are motivated to challenge the norms of some of the practices out there in GP land and beyond in medical space. I think it's, for me, I mean, this has just become part of my persona.

SPEAKER_04:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

Okay, not everybody wants to have an alias as Mr. Overy, but, you know, or Mrs. Overy. But I think, you know, attaching oneself to a campaign and helping in whatever way possible. You don't have to be the uterus. But, you know, getting on board with something you feel passionate about. Yes. And making a difference in whatever novel or creative or, you know, way you feel you can.

SPEAKER_02:

Yes. And Craig, this is quite a personal question. Do you feel it's helped you with your grief for your sister?

SPEAKER_00:

Without a doubt. Without a doubt. You know, my father, sadly, he passed away in March. Yeah. And he was 83. He couldn't have a conversation about Cheryl. Yeah. He couldn't hear her. her name mentioned without understandably getting upset. He just, you know, we tried grief counselling, et cetera, but it was too much for

SPEAKER_04:

him.

SPEAKER_00:

And every time I put that ovary on, I'm reminded of Cheryl's memory, her legacy. And she, by the way, she was, An earth angel. She was so great at her role.

SPEAKER_02:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

Her job as speech therapist, they named a wing in one of the hospitals after her, the treatment center, I should say. Oh, gosh. She impacted so many young kids' lives.

SPEAKER_03:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

She dealt with kids with autism and speech and language challenges. Yes. And she was just phenomenal. Yes. So it helped me to deal with it and to... plow my energy, which could have gone, you know, all the wrong ways, quite frankly. Yes. And I did have a wobble when it first happened. Yeah. And I have just had a wobble recently when my dad passed. So I know the stages and the phases I go through.

SPEAKER_04:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

When I'm in grieving.

SPEAKER_04:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

But it really has helped. And as we've said a few times, just that motivation to go out there and, you know, prevent, hopefully prevent, or at least go some way to, stop this happening to other families or to get women on board and aware. You know, that's the driver. Yes, yes.

SPEAKER_02:

And how about for you,

SPEAKER_00:

Sarah?

SPEAKER_05:

Yeah absolutely I mean I must say my background is in clinical development so for most of my entire career I've been part of developing new drugs for various different therapeutic areas and I have actually worked on a breast cancer study several years ago before my own diagnosis. I've not I mean I would really love the opportunity to get involved with companies that are involved in in diagnostic workups as well because I'm aware of you know the fact that prevention and screening is the most powerful tool we have um you know in the absence of of um the panacea of treatment uh for these diseases so yeah i i've got a real sort of scientific interest in all of all of this as well but obviously having that firsthand and you know with my mom um you know and we all have friends of course who've gone through similar experiences um and i think Channeling the energies into doing something like this. What Craig and I really hope is we are a true catalyst to others doing the same. So our message goes out from us. But, you know, we hope that by providing that message, there's a, you know, a catalyst to other people passing on that message and educating accordingly. So it really does help. Very much so. Because you feel you're turning something negative into something positive and that has to

SPEAKER_02:

happen. Yes, very much so. And causing a ripple is what I hear very strongly. Yeah. To sort of ripple out to other people so they take notice as well.

SPEAKER_00:

People use the term legacy, but I think I'll speak for both of us. Part of our legacy is that we've made an impact on society. Yes, yes. In some way. We're both pretty successful in business, but actually there's a much broader... Society angled to us, clearly.

SPEAKER_02:

Yes,

SPEAKER_00:

yes. And that's so important.

SPEAKER_02:

Absolutely, absolutely. So you've won, you've run over 30 races, you've climbed Kilimanjaro, you've met the King and Queen, and you're aiming to raise over£100,000. What is next for you both? We need to go to the pub,

SPEAKER_05:

Craig, and have a little compliment on this. That's how these things start.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, well, I mean, I'm going to Australia in August to run the Sydney Marathon. Oh, my

SPEAKER_02:

word.

SPEAKER_00:

We do have the Great North Run and Great South Run coming up. Those are kind of fixed events for us every year. How do you get your

SPEAKER_02:

ovary costume on the flight?

SPEAKER_00:

It's a really good question, Mary, and it won't be in the aircraft. It'll be in the hold, I should say, in a large, you know, oversized bag. Yes. And let's hope it arrives in Sydney when I get off the plane. It's there on the carousel. We run, in fact, we've run more than 30 races, Mary. It's a number of approaching 200. Oh my goodness. So it's significant over the years. And, you know, I think we would like to just ensure we're covering each region of the UK. We've covered off at least three, maybe four different regions now, you know, Southwest, Southeast, the Northeast, Yorkshire, because that's an important region in its own right. We want to, we want to go to the North of Ireland, maybe the South of Ireland. We were due to go to Zurich, earlier this year, but we had to put that on hold. So we'll probably go there next year to do the Zurich Half Marathon. So we're sort of working our way globally, you know, within the British Isles and then globally. You become a

SPEAKER_02:

global force. That's phenomenal. Well, certainly after you've run Australia, you'll be a global force.

SPEAKER_05:

But of course, Craig and I are not getting any younger. So we're wanting to make sure we cover our bases to continue this with other types of exposures. Very good. So you've got to find different ways of getting Sorry, Craig.

SPEAKER_00:

I'm going to buy some Segways. So two ovaries on Segways. That'd be quite funny. That's quite a look, isn't

SPEAKER_02:

it? Have you got Mr. and Mrs. Overy Jr.? Are you bringing them through the ranks? Oh,

SPEAKER_05:

wow. I've got three kids, so I'm always trying to get them to do some running. But yeah, I'm not

SPEAKER_00:

sure about that. We need... We need an academy, don't we, set up? I think that could be part of our legacy. Overy Academy. Overy Training Academy. Yes.

SPEAKER_02:

Yes. Okay. So finally, if you could leave our listeners with one message, something that they'll remember and maybe act on, what would it be? Let's come to you first, Sarah.

SPEAKER_05:

So a single sort of strapline message from me would be don't hesitate to seek advice. Push for the outcome that you want and need. Yes. Yeah. Yes.

SPEAKER_02:

Lovely. Thank you, Sarah. And over to you, Craig.

SPEAKER_00:

Listen to your body. Remember beat. Be bloating. E for eating changes, A for abdominal pain, T for any toilet changes. Remember the BEAT acronym.

SPEAKER_02:

Fantastic. Thank you both so much for raising awareness in this conversation on a very, very important topic that may affect many, many people across the country and across the world. You are both incredible. I'm completely in awe of you. Thank you for coming to talk to me today. Thanks so much. Thanks, Mary. Bye. Bye-bye. And if you've been moved by today's conversation, please consider donating to Overcome or sharing this episode. You never know who might need to hear it. Overcome can be contacted at www.overcome.org.uk. And they also have a support number there, which is 0800 008 That's 0800 008 7054. And if you'd like to follow what Mr and Mrs Overy are up to, then please do follow Craig and Sarah. They're both quite active on Instagram. So have a look at them there. Thank you so much for listening to the She Leads Collective podcast. If this episode resonated with you, follow the show or share it with a friend and leave a quick review below or leave us a comment change happens through conversation so let's keep this one going listen out for the next episode and join me as we keep lifting the lid on the stories that matter take care and keep leading with heart

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Mary Gregory

Host