It was an emotional return to Newcastle on Friday. It was also a return that completely blew me away in terms of the number of people who were waiting to greet me at the airport. Family, friends, representatives from The Children's Foundation and the local media were all in attendance. It is yet another aspect of the run across the USA that I'll never forget.
The first person I remember greeting was my son Jack who raced through the no entry doors of arrivals. Then it was my niece Rachel who had sent regular messages of support to me during the run. The greetings kept coming and coming and the whole thing was quite overwhelming and humbling.
Dave Fairlamb had special "Genuine Geordie Heroes" t-shirts made for the occasion and it was great to see so many people wearing them.
Katy, Jack and I posed for photos for the local papers and gave the BBC an interview. Jack has really come into his own over the last few week, giving numerous interviews. He always shows composure beyond his years. I really don't know where he gets it from!
I was thrilled to give interviews to the BBC and ITV, The Journal, Evening Chronicle and to Joel Goldman from Metro Radio. Talking to the media is something that I've improved on so much over the last 3 years. It's something that I really enjoy doing.
Finally, it was an honour to meet Peregrine Solly, a Trustee of the Children's Foundation. He was accompanied by Libby Nolan, the fundraising manager.
Just like the end of the run across the USA, I could not have written a better homecoming story. Thank you to everyone who made the effort to welcome me back home.
Thanks to Joel Goldman of Metro Radio for this video.
