THREE friends will spend the next six weeks driving 11,000 miles from Bromsgrove to Mongolia in an old Toyota Yaris to raise money for charities.

George Goucher, from Bromsgrove, and fellow University of Reading graduates Rupert Harris and Jake Dixon will set off on their adventure across 20 countries on Thursday, as part of the annual Mongol Rally.

The 22-year-olds hope to raise £3,000 to be split between Worcestershire charity Spokes, which helps young people with learning disabilities find work, mental health charity The Nathan Tomkins Trust, which was set up in memory of a friend who took his own life, and the rally's designated charity Cool Earth, which fights deforestation.

George said: "I've wanted to do something like this for ages, then we heard about the Mongol Rally and thought it would be a brilliant challenge and a great opportunity to raise money for some great charities.

"It should take around six weeks to get to Ulaanbaatar, then the other two will fly home while I drive the car back. It will probably be a 10-week round trip for me."

The trio met three years ago at university, where George and Jake studied real estate, and Rupert studied building surveying.

Their team, named 'Around The World in 998ccs', has been sponsored by Jemca Toyota in Reading, which gave them the rally car free of charge.

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