Barbie and Sex Education star Connor Swindells running Brighton Half Marathon in memory of his mum

Barbie and Sex Education actor Connor Swindells is running the Brighton Half Marathon today (February 25) - in memory of his mother.

Swindells, who played Adam Groff in Netflix's Sex Education, lost his mum Phoebe to bowel cancer when he was just seven years old. Now, the actor is a patron of Bowel Cancer UK and will be running the half marathon to raise money for the charity.

Swindells will be one of an estimated 10,000 runners taking part in today's event.

He said: "I’m running the Brighton Half Marathon in honour of my mum who lost her battle with bowel cancer and for everyone who has fought or is currently fighting this disease. I will be doing this run for her and those we all know who have also been through this war.

"All of the money I am able to raise will go towards the vital research of bowel cancer."

At the time of publication, Swindells' fundraising page has received more than £20,000 in donations.

The actor's career has been on a tremendous upwards trajectory in recent years, with the popularity of Sex Education catapaulting him into the role of Aaron in the Barbie movie - in both instances, playing characters who spend most of their screentime down on their luck.

Swindells also starred in the BBC One historical drama SAS: Rogue Heroes, and has done modelling too.

Kerry Thomas, head of public fundraising for Bowel Cancer UK, added: "We are so incredibly proud of Connor, our wonderful patron, for choosing to fundraise for Bowel Cancer UK when he runs the Brighton Half marathon in memory of his mum. Sadly, someone dies from the disease every half an hour in the UK which means that that in average time it takes to run a half marathon four families will lose a loved one.

"It’s only by people like Connor raising money for the charity that we can continue to raise awareness of the disease and its symptoms, encourage people to speak to their GP if they’re worried, and help stop people dying of this curable disease. We hope he crosses the finish line knowing the difference his valuable support will make."