BOURNEMOUTH swimmers can feel proud of their contribution to Little Britain star David Walliams' successful Channel swim.

Members of the Bournemouth Dolphins, based at the Littledown Centre, gave up one of their swimming lanes to allow the comedian to train when he was performing in Bournemouth earlier this year.

The star was so impressed with their generosity he gave them tickets to the Little Britain Live show at the Bournemouth International Centre.

Walliams, whose popular characters include Emily Howard, Lou and Sebastian, completed his charity swim in ten hours and 34 minutes on Tuesday, one of the top 50 fastest Channel swims of all times.

He raised nearly half-a-million pounds for Sport Relief.

Less than 10 per cent of those who attempt to swim the Channel make it to France and the Channel is one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.

Speaking after the swim he said: "I have never done anything sporty in my life. I was always useless at sport at school.

"It is like for some reason my body has said well, you can have one day of exertion' and that day was today."