Neither charity would be drawn on the consequences of going head to head during October

Two of the country’s biggest cancer charities are to go head to head in a battle for funds.

Cancer Research UK (CRUK) is to run its Dryathlon mass participation fundraising event next month - directly competing with Macmillan's annual Go Sober for October.

CRUK normally runs its Dryathlon, where people are urged to give up booze for a month, in January.

Both events, which were both launched five years ago, are huge money spinners for the charities – but Macmillan’s now dwarves its rival.

In a recently published list of the top 25 mass fundraising events for 2017, Go Sober came in at number five, raising £5.2 million, a figure which has been going up year on year.

By contrast, CRUK’s Dryathlon, has been declining.

It brought in £4.2m in its first year and £5m the following year.

But by 2015 this had fallen to £3.7m and £2.8m in 2016. It did not appear in the list of the largest mass fundraising events for 2017.

CRUK told TFN the Dryathlon event had raised £22m since it started, and that the switch to October was part of a trial with a view to launching it year-round.

However, neither charity would be drawn on the consequences of going head to head during October.

Sarah Pickersgill, head of fundraising products at CRUK, said: “Dryathlon has been successful for Cancer Research UK, raising over £22m since launching in 2013.

“So that Dryathlon can keep raising money for our work to beat cancer, it’s essential we look at ways to evolve the campaign.

“Since 2015 we have offered people the flexibility to take part in Dryathlon in January or September. This year we are trialling Dryathlon in October as an initial step to keeping the campaign open all year round so that people can give up alcohol at any point to raise money for Cancer Research UK. This is something we will be looking to do across all our fundraising campaigns.”

Macmillan did not respond when approached by TFN.