PHYSICIST and presenter Brian Cox is to take on a charity challenge in honour of a Red Arrow who lost his life at the Bournemouth Air Festival.

The professor - who is a patron of the Jon Egging Trust - will participate in the Great North Run on Sunday, September 13 to raise funds for the organisation.

He will be joined by the late pilot's wife, Dr Emma Egging, and two of his Red Arrows team mates, Chris Lyndon Smith and Ben Plank.

Prof Cox said: "I’m really looking forward to running with Emma Egging and the Red Arrows pilots, and I want to raise as much money as possible to support the amazing work the charity does to help young people move forward in their lives.

"The most important thing that the trust does is to show its students that there are possibilities out there. We are talking about young people who have low aspirations and low self-confidence – not through any fault of their own. £45 a day is all its costs to put a young person on the Blue Skies programme, and change their lives.”

Dr Egging, CEO of the Jon Egging Trust, said: “The Great North Run and its association with the Red Arrows will always make it a particularly poignant race for me and it means a great deal to be running to raise money for the trust with two of Jon’s teammates from the Reds, as well as our patron Professor Brian Cox.

"Fund raising initiatives like the Great North Run are absolutely vital to our success, and fulfilling our ambition to work with 10,000 young people every year by 2020.”

To sponsor Brian Cox and the rest of the team. visit joneggingtrust.org.uk

The Jon Egging Trust was set up in memory of 'Red 4' Jon Egging, who lost his life on August 20 2011 while completing a display at the Bournemouth Air Festival.

The charity realises his dream of helping young people overcome adversity, identify their strengths and work towards their ambitions.