PUB regular Geoff Evans swapped his usual tipple for a huge bar of chocolate during a calorific charity challenge at Blackburn's Blackamoor pub.

And Geoff, an engineer, managed to guzzle nine pounds of Toblerone in as many hours to raise £190.

The money will be split between the East Lancashire Hospice Appeal and nearby St James Primary School, Blackburn, which is planning a series of fund raising events in the next couple of months as part of a special project.

Landlord Dennis Sturgess, who runs the Blackamoor with his wife Christine, said: "Geoff managed to keep going all day long with the help of lots of cups of tea and coffee. "It took him nine hours but he got there in the end and he wasn't even sick at the end of it all."

Regulars at the pub are now looking forward to taking on members of St James' PTA in charity football and netball matches to be played on Sunday, April 9, on the fields behind the school in Stopes Brow, Blackburn, at 1.30pm.

The East Lancashire Hospice, at Park Lee, Blackburn, is aiming to raise £1.3million to pay for improved day care facilities.

Anyone who wants to make a donation or raise money for the appeal should call the East Lancashire Hospice Appeals Office on 01254 660900 or Amy Binns at the Lancashire Evening Telegraph on 01254 678678 ext 208

Geoff is pictured preparing to attack the massive chocolate bar, cheered on by Blackamoor landlord and landlady Dennis and Christine Sturgess.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.