Two things I have always wanted to achieve are to swim the English Channel and to run a marathon. And I am planning to swim the Channel next August or September after the open-water World Championships in Rome!

Whether I can break the world record, which is held by a Bulgarian called Petar Stoychev and currently stands at 6hr 57min 50 sec, is dependent upon so many things, including tides, the weather, fatigue and jellyfish. Uuugh, dreaded jellyfish! But I reckon the trickiest thing I will face is swimming completely on my own. In open-water competitions, at least there are normally loads of people around and about me. And if the whole field swims slowly in a tactical race, I can still cross the line first. But swimming across the Channel is an entirely different thing. It will be just me on my own against the clock, which I will find mentally quite tough. By the way, the women’s record, which is held by Yvetta Hlavacova of the Czech Republic, is 7hr 25min 15sec.

I would love to ask David Walliams, the comedian from Little Britain, for a few pointers. He swam the Channel in 2006 in a time of 10hr 28min 37sec, which was an incredible achievement. It was an inspiration to all of us!

I am also hoping to raise £1 million for charity. In fact, three charities: Children in Need, which needs no second introduction; Mind, the mental health organisation of which I am proud to be a patron; and Right to Play, which works with children in the developing world.

I’ll let you know how it all goes!

Cassie