An intrepid Abbots Langley trio have raised more than £700 for a hospital where each of them has undergone major surgery in recent years.

David Smith, 55, Norman Hayward, 63, and Joyce Clark, 72, who all live in flats in Northcotts, took part in Sunday’s Harefield Hospital Fun Run to help raise money for a new £1.5 million MRI machine.

Mr Smith and Mr Hayward have both received treatment at the hospital for lung condition COPD while Ms Clark underwent a double heart bypass 18 months ago.

They stuck together throughout the course and finished in a respectable one hour 20 minutes, even jogging the final 20 metres to finish with a flourish.

Mr Smith said: "It was brilliant fun. The people we met were inspiring but I felt knocked out after finishing.

"On the course we met a little boy who was only 18 months old but had been born with a hole in his heart and two reversed arteries. He was going round with his parents but was walking a bit, then getting carried, then walking a bit more.

"When we got back we started telling people how good it was and it looks like there will be eight of us doing it next year."