Biggar’s James helped raise £60k for CHAS

Scottish actor James Mackenzie was among the 15-strong team to complete the challenge which saw participants brave up to 50 degrees heat and climb to the top of the massive Chegaga Dunes over the course of four days.

The expedition was the second extreme challenge of its kind following a 50- mile trek into the Arctic Circle last year which raised £45,000 for CHAS.

James, who has also appeared in hit TV show Outlander, is currently starring in hit CBeebies show Molly and Mack, He is from Dundee but now lives in Biggar, Lanarkshire with his wife Helen and their four-year-old son Magnus.

The 40-year-old actor, who is playing Stromboli in Glasgow’s Pavilion Theatre’s Pinnochio panto from November 28, is a long-standing supporter of CHAS and became the charity’s ambassador for the annual Teddy Bear Picnic this year.

He said: “I turned 40 this year and I always wanted to do something physically challenging in aid of a good cause so when I was approached by CHAS to take part in the Sahara challenge I felt very honoured.

“Having lost my mum seven years ago and becoming a father four years ago, my life has changed considerably.”