Twelve fabulous goodgym runners ran to help Stephens House and Gardens. We started gathering at the coffee tables outside the Pheonix cinema chatting and enjoying the evening sun. At the allotted time (7pm) we started our warm up and played a quick game of truth or lie much to the amusement of all. We then set off on the 3km run to the gardens with Jody as the back marker. To make the run fun we used the back roads and alleys of East finchley. It really is a maze of little streets and alleys great to keep you on your toes! We reached the gardens in good time and met with Alison Dean, the chair of the charity, who explained a little about the trust and what we would be doing. Stephens House and Gardens was bequeathed by ‘Inky’ Stephens exactly one hundred years ago to the people of Barnet. The house generates funds by letting rooms in the house and running a onsite cafe in the converted stables. Worth a visit for a coffee or bite to eat! We set about our task of cutting back bushes along the boundary of the park and filled two large garden bags. We tidied up and set off on a short run around the 10 acre garden. We gathered at the house and the only statue of Spike Milligan for a group photo. After a short sprint we gathered again for a breathing exercise much to the amusement of many! Re-energised with oxygen and mirth we ran back to the Phoenix cinema with the sun starting to set.

Thanks to all who came tonight…. you did good!

and Congratulations to Graham for his black 50 shirt ...give him a shout!

If you don't know much about Spike see below

Legendary comedian Spike Milligan would have turned 100 this year. Starting with The Goon Show in the 1950s, Milligan revolutionised comedy with his brilliantly surreal imagination, inspiring the likes of Monty Python and Eddie Izzard. A century on from his birth, we recall some of the British-Irish comedian’s finest jokes, witticisms and one-liners.

“I thought I’d begin by reading a poem by Shakespeare, but then I thought, ‘Why should I? He never reads any of mine.’ “ “Money can’t buy you happiness but it does bring you a more pleasant form of misery. ” “I have the body of an 18 year old. I keep it in the fridge.” “I don’t mind dying. I just don’t want to be there when it happens.” “My father had a profound influence on me. He was a lunatic.” “How long was I in the army? Five foot eleven.”

Read more at:( https://inews.co.uk/light-relief/spike-milligan-jokes/)