**Embargoed until Saturday 5th September 2026**
Football legend and DEBRA UK President to tackle three peaks and three open-water swims in three days to raise at least £500,000 for people living with EB
BRACKNELL, UK. September 4th, 2026 – Graeme Souness CBE will take on his toughest DEBRA UK challenge yet: three peaks, three open-water swims and three punishing days across England, Wales and Scotland in September, to raise at least £500,000 for people living with the agony of epidermolysis bullosa (EB).
EB, also known as “butterfly skin”, is a group of rare, devastating and intensely painful genetic skin conditions that cause the skin to blister and tear at the slightest touch. For children and adults living with EB, everyday life can mean relentless pain, open wounds and constant fear of injury.
Funds raised will support DEBRA UK, the national EB charity, helping to improve quality of life today and accelerate research into potentially life-changing drug treatments.
This tough new challenge will form a key part of DEBRA UK’s urgent £20m Stop the Pain appeal, which aims to fund better care now and drive the development of treatments that could heal EB wounds faster, reduce pain and itch, and bring hope of a future free from the agony of EB.
Graeme will be joined by Harry Clark, winner of BBC’s The Traitors series 2; Scottish singer-songwriter Callum Beattie; former Scotland international and Celtic captain Scott Brown; and members of the EB community, including Kevin Kealy, who has EB simplex and will complete every leg, and Calum Blackman, dad to three-year-old Albi, who has recessive dystrophic EB.
Talking about the challenge, Graeme said: “This September, I’m taking on my toughest challenge yet for everyone living with the agony of EB. Three peaks. Three open-water swims. Three days. It will be brutal, but nothing compared to the pain children and adults with EB face every day.
“We urgently need to raise at least £500,000 to help fund another clinical trial and move closer to securing effective EB drug treatments for each of the main forms of EB. Please sponsor me. Every donation and every share matters. Please help make every step and every stroke count.”
The challenge follows Graeme’s previous fundraising efforts for DEBRA UK, including a 30-mile English Channel swim in 2023 with Team DEBRA UK, which raised more than £1.2 million and helped boost the charity’s ‘A Life Free of Pain’ appeal.
In 2025, Graeme and his team completed another epic endurance swim across the Channel and back, raising almost £730,000 for further drug testing and reaching an estimated 10 million people through national media coverage. Together, these challenges have raised vital funds, increased awareness and helped more people affected by EB discover DEBRA UK’s support.
To sponsor Graeme, search ‘DEBRA’ to donate or visit www.debra.org.uk/graeme
Donations could help fund potentially life-changing research, improve quality of life for people with EB, and bring effective treatments closer.
ENDS