COTSWOLD brothers are preparing to take on a tough endurance challenge in temperatures of up to 55 degrees Celsius.

Alex Davenport-Jones, 41, from Stow and his brother Nick Davenport-Jones, 38, Maugersbury from will take part in this year's Marathon des Sables, a 156 mile marathon across the Sahara Desert.

The marathon takes place over 6 days, with the brothers aiming to raise £40,000 for two cancer charities.

Alex, who is known to many as the general manager of The Porch House Inn, in Stow said: “We wanted to raise a significant amount of money for these two, fantastic charities and felt the best way to do that would be to attempt something genuinely extraordinary."

The brothers were looking for a way to raise significant funds for local cancer charity the Nicola Corry Support Foundation and the World Cancer Research Fund.

The desire to raise money for these charities comes after both their parents and Alex’s partner Sally Anne Westmacott, 38, were afflicted by the disease.

Ms Anne-Westmacott, mother of two, is currently undergoing treatment for breast cancer at Cheltenham Royal Infirmary and has personally benefitted from the work of the Nicola Corry Foundation.

Alex added: "They were amazing, they came out of nowhere and offered financial support for our children's nursery costs, which was a huge help while Sally went through Chemotherapy for six months.

"Then at Christmas, a cheque to help with children's presents came through the post, which was unforgettable in terms of a gesture of utter kindness."

The marathon takes place on six days between Friday April 7 until Monday April 17.

The brothers have not employed professional personal trainers or running coaches, nor are they members of a gym.

Before commencing training for the Marathon des Sables the longest run either had experienced was a half marathon.

Since December 2015 the brothers have undertaken 120 runs, amassing 1,700 miles, typically running three times a week and covering between 20 and 50 miles.

As part of their marathon preparations they competed in the Cotswolds Ultra Marathon in September 2016, which took place over two days and covered 57 miles.

The brothers have so far raised nearly £10,000 of their £40,000 target and are looking for further sponsorship or donations ‘in kind’ that can be put towards a charity auction they are planning for later in the year.

For more information, visit their website www.madns.co.uk