A Lanarkshire mum of three, who has the faulty gene that causes Huntington’s disease, has enlisted the help of the BBC’s Casualty stars in her latest fundraising quest in support of families whose lives are impacted by the condition.
Gillian McNab, 52, who works as a palliative care nurse at Strathcarron Hospice, is urging people from across Scotland to join her at Dance 100 – a new dance-athon event created in collaboration with Scottish Huntington’s Association to increase awareness about the complex neurological condition and raise funds for the charity.
She reached out for help to Casualty actor George Rainsford who plays Dr Ethan Hardy, a consultant facing the onset of Huntington’s disease in the long-running BBC drama. Gillian and George first met during a Zoom call last year organised by Huntington’s disease charities.
Their online chat so inspired George that he invited Gillian to visit the Casualty set last summer, meet the cast, and take part in filming as an extra. For Casualty super-fan Gillian, it was a dream come true.
“I started nursing around the time Casualty began and I’ve always watched it,” said Gillian.
“Visiting the Casualty set was one of the best experiences of my life. George came in on his day off and introduced me to the cast, showed me round then stayed to watch the scenes being filmed with me as an extra. It was amazing.
“His character’s storyline is raising so much awareness about Huntington’s disease and the impact that it has on individuals and families, and George does even more outside of filming to raise awareness since becoming Patron of Huntington’s Disease Association England and Wales, too.
“When it came round to organising Dance 100, I got in touch to see if George could help promote the event – and he sent back an amazing video of the cast dancing to the Casualty theme tune. Since then he’s also spoken about Dance 100 on BBC1 Morning Live. I didn’t know he was talking about me and showing my photo in Casualty scrubs until my friends all started texting to say I was on the telly. I was blown away.”
Gillian, of Lanark, has become one of the leading voices in Scotland’s Huntington’s disease community, raising awareness about the disease by giving talks to community groups, health professionals and social care practitioners, volunteering as a trustee on the charity’s board, and fundraising. So far, Gillian has raised more than £20,000 for the charity through dare-devil stunts like sky-diving and wing walking – and she hopes Dance 100 will boost that total.
“Dancing has always been important to me and my daughters. We dance to celebrate the good times and we dance to lift our spirits when life gets tough,” said Gillian.
“Dance 100 will bring people together to dance joyfully and with purpose. I’d love to see an army of dancers in George Square on Sunday, June 12. Together, we’ll spread the word about Huntington’s disease and how Scottish Huntington’s Association is helping families all over the country.”
Gillian was inspired by her neighbours who danced in the street for 100 days in a row to stay connected and keep fit during the first COVID-19 lockdown.
To celebrate Gillian’s 51st birthday, her amazing neighbours set themselves the challenge of completing 100 socially distanced dances in one day to raise money for Scottish Huntington’s Association. They went on to collect more than £5600 to help families impacted by the rare, degenerative and incurable neurological condition.
“When the symptoms start I’ll no longer be able to live my life the way I want to,” explained Gillian.
“I also live with the knowledge that each of my three daughters may also have the faulty gene. I can’t change that but I try my best to stay positive and do what I can to help other people who are affected by this terrible disease as well.
“I’m also determined to live life to the fullest and create wonderful memories for me and my girls to treasure.”
Chief executive of Scottish Huntington’s Association, Alistair Haw, said: “Gillian is an inspiration to so many people whose lives are impacted by this appalling disease. Despite knowing she will develop symptoms at some stage, Gillian remains determined to speak out and get involved to raise awareness and challenge the stigma that all too many families experience.
“Families, young people and carers across Scotland rely on the specialist services that only Scottish Huntington’s Association provides. Every person who puts on one of our t-shirts and joins Gillian at Dance 100 will help us find and reach out to families who desperately need specialist support only we and our partners can provide.”
To find out more about how you can join Dance 100 George Square, Glasgow, on Sunday, June 12, visit hdscotland.org/Dance100/
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