Mid Sussex mother of boy with leukaemia joins friend Holly Willoughby on This Morning to promote ‘pants’ fundraiser

Children’s author Hannah Peckham, 42, and her four-year-old son Bodhi, joined her childhood friend Holly Willoughby on This Morning to encourage people to put their pants on their head for Leukaemia UK.

Hannah, who attended Burgess Hill Girls and is also Zoe Ball’s stepsister, believes ‘leukaemia is pants’ and has a JustGiving page at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/teambodhi.

“Although the prognosis for leukaemia is quite good the treatment is really harsh,” Hannah told the Middy. “It’s so important that Leukaemia UK can do more research so they can save more lives and make the treatments kinder. It’s three and a half years, which is literally Bodhi's whole lifetime again that he'll be having treatment.”

Hannah said she was shocked after Bodhi was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in November last year. Before the diagnosis she said Bodhi had picked up viruses that he found difficult to shake off and had complained that his legs were weak, saying ‘mummy, my legs are out of breath’.

Hannah said Bodhi is now in a ‘less intense stage of treatment’, but this still involves three medicines in the morning, four in the evening, oral chemo every night, injected chemo once a month, lumbar puncture once a month and extra chemo on a Wednesday.

She said: “We’re so grateful that there is treatment, but the fact that it’s so brutal is heart-breaking.”

She added that it would be ideal if her fundraiser could help Leukaemia UK improve treatments while Bodhi is undergoing his.

Hannah, who has released several children’s stories through Little Bodhi Books, said her social media campaign encourages people to take a photo of themselves wearing underpants on their head. They can then choose a charity to donate to – like Young Lives vs Cancer, Rockinghorse Children’s Charity or her Leukaemia UK fundraiser – and tag these groups in a social media post while briefly explaining what they are doing. People are then urged to nominate friends to do the same and also tag @h.j.peckham, using the hashtags #postyourpants #leukaemiaispants and #teambodhi.

Hannah said she got the idea while she was in hospital with Bodhi on Saturday, the day before his cancelled superhero birthday party. She said she turned around to see Bodhi running around naked with his pants on his head. The sight made her laugh so she took a photo of the pants on his head and posted it to a WhatsApp group for friends and family.

“Everyone started to reply,” she said, adding that people sent in photos of themselves with pants on their heads in solidarity, which Bodhi found hilarious.

Hannah asked for permission to put the photos on social media and began her JustGiving page. “It wasn't planned, it just kind of happened,” she said.

Hannah thanked Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield for highlighting the campaign on This Morning. She said: “They were lovely and Bodhi was thrilled with his Thor outfit – he hasn't put the hammer down.”

The JustGiving fundraiser is nearing £4,000 and people can donate at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/teambodhi.