A FUNDRAISING champion will mark Fred Dibnah’s memory by jumping 10,000 feet from a plane to raise funds for the charity which treated him in his final days.

Wendy Close will take part in a parachute jump in aid of The Christie Hospital in Manchester, where Fred received treatment before he died from cancer on November 6, 2004.

She has so far raised about £1,000 for the jump.

She previously raised thousands of pounds selling badges for the Fred Dibnah Appeal to pay for a statue of the famous steeplejack in Bolton.

Her daring leap will mark the 10th anniversary of Fred’s death.

The 62-year-old from Astley Bridge said: “I’m looking forward to the parachute jump but I’m trying not to think about it too much.

“I just want to do it and raise as much money as possible.

“I feel all right now but I might not on the day itself.

“The support from people has been really good.

“As soon as I’ve said the words ‘Fred Dibnah’ people are more than happy to donate. It’s really important, especially this year, to remember Fred Dibnah.”

Wendy only ever met Fred once but she said it is a meeting she will never forget.

She said: “I remember it well — it was September 3, 1996, and I went to visit him at his home with the rest of the Halliwell Local History Society.

“We walked round his yard and I asked for a photo with him, to which he replied ‘Aye, cock’. He was really friendly and it was a lovely place.”

The jump takes place less than two months before the 10th anniversary.

Wendy’s name is also on a plaque on Fred’s statue in Oxford Street.

The Christie Daredevil Parachute Jump Day will be held at Black Knights Parachute Centre in Cockerham, near Lancaster, on Sunday.