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Celebrities are preparing to don their bras and join thousands of Londoners for an overnight charity walking marathon through the streets of the capital.

The MoonWalk, which traditionally starts and ends in Hyde Park, aims to raise millions of pounds for vital breast cancer causes.

Jennifer Saunders and Kirstie Allsopp

TV presenters Lorraine Kelly and Kirstie Allsopp and comediennes Victoria Wood and Jennifer Saunders are among those who have taken part in the event's 10-year history.

Organisers Walk the Walk are hoping this year's marathon will see more famous faces, including makeover guru Nicky Hambleton-Jones and 成人快手 Breakfast's Dr Rosemary Leonard, and top the 拢5m raised in 2007.

"We've come a hell of a long way," says founder Nina Barough.

The 53-year-old former businesswoman decided to walk the New York marathon - in her bra - with a group of friends in 1996.

"It's about making women come together in a very strong way..."

Founder Nina Barough

She was also unaware her first 26.2 mile power walk for charity would lead to an annual event that thousands of women regularly take part in.

"It just seemed a fun thing to do," is her response.

"I was very passionate that it should be in aid of breast cancer, I don't know why and only the Universe will know what was behind that passion, but it's just one of the magical things that have happened to me and the charity."

Shortly after her first walk, fate intervened dramatically and Ms Barough was diagnosed with breast cancer herself, aged 41. She is now clear of the disease.

"People didn't talk about it then, I remember because it affected me at the time," she says.

In another irony, the MoonWalk owes its beginnings to the London Marathon and to the small number of women who couldn't get places for the event.

The MoonWalk gets underway

A 'one-off' marathon was created which would start at midnight and finish early in the morning on the day of London's better known version.

Now the MoonWalk has attracted a title sponsor, Playtex, and grown from a couple of dozen participants to over 15,000 avid walkers, dedicated to powering around London's streets in lycra and leggings and those trademark decorated bras.

"Everywhere you look you see women in their bras, all excited and shouting and blowing whistles. I've never seen so many thousands of women, and men, doing something together and helping one another," she continued.

Ms Barough said walking in bras to raise money for breast cancer research made some benefactors feel slightly uneasy at first.

"[But] it's not about making women look at breasts, or making women who don't have their breasts stand out, but about making women come together in a very strong way," she continues.

The event continues to expand and Walk the Walk has created a number of daytime "SunWalks" over shorter distances for families to take part in, along with a second MoonWalk in Edinburgh.

Daytime "Sun Walks" have been created

The goal remains to link the world with a marathon walk in as many cities as possible on the same night.

"Initially it was about raising money but over the years it has developed and become just as much about the empowerment it gives to women," says Ms Barough.

"On the night what knocks people off their feet is the sense of camaraderie... it gives me goose bumps just thinking about it."

The Playtex MoonWalk is on Saturday 17 May, with all funds going to breast cancer care and research.

This year's theme is Bollywood meets Rock n Roll - for hints and tips on bra decorating, visit the Moonwalk site, below.

Volunteers are needed for early bird shifts on the mornings of the 17 and 18 May - if you can help, visit the Walk the Walk site, also below.