Three men and a dog to recreate epic adventure

The trio, who will paddle from Walton on Thames in Surrey to Oxford, will be accompanied by Noel's dog, 11-year-old Staffordshire Bull Terrier Daisy, who will stand in as the fictional four-legged friend from the book Montmorency.
Mr Dominy, a father to two grown-up sons, said: "We are intending to have some real fun on the River Thames in August but there is a very serious background to our adventure. We have all witnessed the fantastic support and comfort given by Macmillan nurses at times of greatest need and is it for this reason we have chosen Macmillan Cancer Support as our charity.
"All three of us are big readers and so we were all familiar with the novel. The characters get up to all sorts, they fall in the river and get drunk. I said when I retired I wanted to do something exciting but different to raise money for charity. "
The group, calling themselves 'three grumpy old men in a boat', aim to raise £50,000 for the charity after Mr Dominy chose the cause because the nurses provided care for his late father.
In keeping with the comic novel, the three friends, plan to row upstream against the current in the 150th year since the little-known Midlands author's birth. They will be taking on the challenge in a 120-year-old hired skiff - a traditional wooden rowing boat -in which they will sleep on at night.
Mr Dominy, who used to coach rugby and football at Amersham and Chiltern Rugby Football Club, said: "We reckon for 85 miles, we are going to have to aim for 12 miles a day rowing - three hours in the morning and three in the afternoon. We all think we are pretty sporty and like a challenge. Noel and myself go to the gym several times a week and I play badminton but I haven't actually done much rowing for many years. I think we are nervously confident."
The trio, who are inviting well-wishers to join them on the Thames tow path along their route, are due to leave Walton-on-Thames at 10am on August 10, stopping at Runnymeade, Cookham, Henley-on-Thames, Mapledurham, Benson, Clifton Hampden before arriving at The Heads of the River Bridge in Oxford to be greeted by their families, including Mr Dominy's wife Rosemary, on August 17.
The novel has been previously recreated by the BBC, who brought together Griff Rhys-Jones, Rory McGrath and Dara O'Briain for a 2006 series.
To sponsor the trio visit www.justgiving.com/3grumpyoldmeninaboatwithdaisy/