A fear of heights and a previously damaged plane could not stop a regional daily editor making a giant leap for charity.

Jeremy Clifford, of the Northants Evening Telegraph, strapped himself to an instructor and hurtled to Earth from 13,500ft above the green fields of Cambridgeshire on Sunday.

Seven minutes later Jeremy and 12 other hardy fundraisers, who he said were very important on the day in helping him get through it, were back safely on terra firma.

The group are raising money for the Crazy Hats Breast Cancer Appeal, with Jeremy well on his way to hitting his own £1,000 target.

He has been blogging about the build up to his skydive, and in particular his fear of flying and heights, since he decided to take on the challenge four months ago.

The jump had to be put back seven days after the plane broke which only served to heighten his anxiety.

Jeremy post-dive with Glennis Hooper who founded the Crazy Hats appeal

Describing the skydive, Jeremy wrote: “Frustratingly, even for a man whose profession is based on the written word, it is incredibly hard to describe.

“It was wracked by anxiety, rather than fear, as the moment approached for the airplane door to open.

“The relentless climb to 13,500 feet seemed to take an eternity. The heat, anticipation and anxiety builds with every 1,000 feet…..and then the door opens.

“The rush of cold air hits you – it’s not a feeling you’re used to when you’re two miles in the air and your brain is telling you this isn’t right.

“Your instructor gets up, you’re strapped to him, so you have no choice but to go with him – and he approaches the door.

“I opted to somersault out backwards from the plane. You suddenly get the right way up and the ground is hurtling towards you at 120mph.

“Then the parachute opens, you feel like you’re not descending at all, just suspended in air.

“A few tricks on the parachute cords and then the sick feeling of vertigo kicks in. Thankfully not for long and we make a perfect landing.”