A chippy welcomed a famous face recently and remarked on his kindness while he embarks on a long charity run.

Paolo’s, a chippy in Carlisle, had former Coventry footballer turned author Ashley Cain, who visited just before closing time last night (May 13).

Mr Cain, from Nuneaton in Warwickshire, started a challenge that will see him run, cycle, and paddle thousands of miles across the country on April 24 this year as part of the Ultraman 2024.

He will go from Land’s End to John O’Groats three times, each time running, cycling, and kayaking respectively.

April 24 is the date when his daughter Azaylia died from acute myeloid leukaemia, a type of cancer, in 2021, at the age of eight months.

He said this run will aim to form a legacy for Azaylia across the world, and follows the release of his non-fiction book about the story, titled ‘Strong: Life, Loss, and Eternal Love for my Daughter’.

Currently on the running part of the challenge, he was in Carlisle recently and needed some well-earned fuel, so stopped at the chippy.

“It was near closing time, about quarter to nine, and a group of them came in,” Linsey Coulthard, the manager on shift, explained.

She said they had by then turned the pans off but still had enough food for everyone when he arrived.

“I went into the back to check if it was him, I had a look on Instagram, and it was.

“I asked him how he got on that day, and he told me he was really hungry.

“He was just so lovely – I told him I had read his book and that I was really impressed by him, it’s such an amazing thing that he’s doing.”

Ms Coulthard asked him for an autograph, and Cain upped the offer to a group photo, which he and she put on their respective Instagram stories.

“He asked how much he owed us and I told him it was on us, they were just looking to get refuelled.

“We were all a little bit starstruck,” Ms Coulthard said.

She added: “I said ‘oh you are going up the country, you will meet so many people on the way’, but he told me ‘I won’t forget you girls in this chippy’.”