Village 'Dreamboys' bare all in hospital fundraiser

A village has given itself a bare naked challenge and enlisted 15 residents to pose nude for a charity calendar.

The gentlemen of Denton had thought they were only going "topless" until a former photographer persuaded them to strip off.

Denton, near Harleston, Norfolk, only has a population of some 320, which includes about 100 adult men, but an organiser said they had had to turn volunteers away.

The Dreamboys calendar has been organised to raise funds for Addenbrooke's and Royal Papworth hospitals, both in Cambridgeshire.

Charity fundraiser and semi-retired builder Paul Wilby, 62, said the village had organised a few charity events but "wanted a finale, so I asked if anyone was interested in taking their tops off".

"But our photographer Mark went a bit further and made them get everything off, which, amazingly, they all volunteered to do," said Mr Wilby.

"We were turning people away, there were so many keen to do it."

Over the years, the village has raised money for Addenbrooke's and Papworth as well as Diabetes UK and charities abroad, with sponsored walks, bike rides, tractor runs and even bingo.

This is its first nude calendar, but it was all done in good taste, with the men's modesty strategically preserved.

For Mr Wilby, fundraising for the hospitals was personal.

His son had a life-threatening condition and was treated at Papworth, "who came up with a new surgery to basically unblock the blood clots in his lungs and open up his arteries".

"He went from a life expectancy of 'could die tomorrow' to a normal life span," said Mr Wilby.

Calendar model Phil Luton, 77, said the idea of going in the buff "didn't worry me at all".

"I trusted Mark the photographer, that he would get me in a good pose," he said.

Was he ever worried a passer-by might see him in his birthday suit?

"I wasn't really, to be honest. I haven't got a lot to show, really," he said.

"I've been in and out of hospitals all this year because I've got prostate cancer, so why not?"

Former Daily Mail photographer Mark Richards, 70, moved to Denton three years ago.

He has taken pictures of royalty, actors, presidents and prime ministers.

"This was the best experience of the lot," he said.

So what logistics are involved in shooting a naked calendar?

"Shooting naked men is not an easy task, there are many things that need to be hidden, strategically," said Mr Richards.

"It proved difficult but, you know, it was good fun."

Paul White, director of communications for Addenbrooke's charitable trust, said donations helped it provide even better care.

A year ago it purchased another surgical robot, at a cost of £1.5m.

The money raised by the calendar, and other activities that Denton as a village were doing, would help "raise important money for the hospital".

He said: "There's something really nice for staff in the hospital who work really hard, seeing people saying 'thank you' in recognition of what the hospital has done for them."

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