MS Week 2012: the Fightback so far

So it won’t have escaped your attention that it’s MS Week – and we’re asking everyone to get active and Join the Fightback against MS.
 

Fighting back on the box

It’s been a fantastically busy week so far. Early on Monday, Mark Lewis, the lawyer who represented the Dowler family and others in the phone-hacking scandal, was on BBC Breakfast talking about his experience of living with MS.

He was promoting our report, Fighting Back, which reveals the need for greater awareness of MS, and understanding about disability in general.

An hour or so later, Janis Winehouse, the mother of Amy Winehouse, was on ITV’s Daybreak talking about how she fights back against MS, alongside our very own Director of Information and Education, Sue Farrington.

Janis recently presented a cheque for £20,000 to the MS Society to fund research into childhood MS.

The report has received widespread media coverage elsewhere too, with Sue Farrington and our chief executive Simon Gillespie busy doing numerous radio and TV interviews with stations all over the country.
 

Making tea wearing boxing gloves

People have also been watching and sharing our MS Week videos in droves. The videos give a hint of what it’s like to live with some of the most common MS symptoms – including depicting someone attempting to make a cup of tea while wearing boxing gloves.

Over 3,000 people have watched them so far.
 

High profile support

Twitter has gone mad for the Fightback campaign, with tweets of support coming in from JLS, Scott Mills, Gok Wan, the Maccabees, Sally Gunnell, actor Rebecca Front, weatherman Alex Deakin and even Paris Hilton from across the pond, whose grandmother had MS.

Fighting back around the UK

Our fantastic branches and supporters have been busy with fundraising and awareness-raising events, with lots of people gearing up for Cake Break tomorrow.

In Scotland, as well as dying sheep orange on the famous M8 Pyramids, our team is hosting a reception in Edinburgh tonight, with politicians and other influential people in attendance.

A similar function took place in London last night and on Tuesday in Belfast, while an accessible family fun day is taking place in Newtown, Powys on Sunday.

A Fightback Flashmob also took place in Livingston, with 35 traditional Korean martial arts students treating shoppers to an amazing display in bright orange t-shirts. A similar flashmob in Aberdeen raised awareness of MS, thanks to a local Jazzercise group.
 

Let them eat cake

And of course, Cake Break is the big draw this Friday, with over 2,400 events registered to take place across the UK.

Have you joined the Fightback?

Over 5,000 people have visited our campaign website so far, and more people are joining the Fightback every day, by donating to vital MS research. Isn’t it about time you did too?
 

Ian is Head of Communications at the MS Society.