All charities are very grateful for any celebrity endorsement they can get, though we do not seek it from such tragic circumstances as this. Olympic gold medallist James Cracknell sustained a devastating brain injury this July while cycling in America, and I am pleased to learn that the champion rower has been making good progress since his return to the UK.

His stunning wife Beverley Turner, a television and radio presenter, will describe on Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour tomorrow morning the impact his brain injury has had on the whole family, and will say that although James is recovering well, there is a long way to go as many of his difficulties are not obvious to the general public. This is all too familiar to families of those with a loved one who has an acquired brain injury, who have suffered a tragic accident like this without warning, and can affect their lives for ever..

Peter McCabe, CEO of Headway UK, will also be on the show to support Beverley and talk about how brain injury can affect families, explaining why brain injury is often referred to as the “hidden disability”.

Thank you Beverley for highlighting these issues publicly, and I sincerely hope James continues to make good progress.

Headway Cambridgeshire is the chosen charity I support as its chair of trustees. I never fail to be moved and inspired by the dedicated staff who work there, and the service users I meet who have suffered a brain injury.