Epic classic car journey in tribute to brother of Jeremy Hunt

Two friends are embarking on a journey in a classic car from the Great Wall of China to Paris in memory of the brother of former Chancellor Sir Jeremy Hunt.Surrey businessman Charlie Hunt died from spindle cell sarcoma, a rare cancer, in August 2023.His friends Ed Talbot, from Woking, and James Hall-Smith, from Marlborough, Wiltshire, set off on Saturday to navigate through 12 countries in a restored 1972 Lancia Fulvia as part of the Hero-Era Peking to Paris Motor Challenge.The pair, who are raising funds for charity Sarcoma UK, said it was their friend's "adventurous spirit and can-do attitude" that inspired them to take on the challenge.
The trio had known each other since they were young men.Mr Talbot said: "Charlie's attitude in life, and while fighting this terrible disease, was only upbeat and positive."He embraced everything life had to offer and brought a contagious energy to all he did."Mr Hall-Smith added: "He was a doer and went on a lot of expeditions himself such as climbing Machu Picchu in Peru."He would have been very excited for us taking part in this event."
The 9,319-mile (14,988km) rally crosses Asia and Europe and is expected to take six weeks.Charlie Hunt was diagnosed with sarcoma in 2020.He ran the London Marathon in 2022 with his elder brother, Jeremy, raising £22,000 for Sarcoma UK.He died in 2023, aged 53.
Spindle cell sarcoma accounts for six out of every 10,000 cancer diagnoses in the UK.Kerry Reeves-Kneip, Sarcoma UK's director of fundraising and communications, said: "This challenge embodies Charlie's adventurous spirit and positive outlook that inspired all who knew him, while raising crucial funds for Sarcoma UK to advance research into rare cancers that claim too many lives too soon."

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Analysts at Bank of America think the company could be worth up to £100 billion – in other words, the shares could climb significantly higher. Its long-term success depends on whether the company can deliver cleaner, greener, quieter engines – and, in that respect, the Trent 1000 saga does not augur well. For the moment, Rolls is flying high. But its critics, while still in a small minority, are adopting the brace position – in case of a sudden and troubling loss of altitude.