FOR much of her life Laura Merry has been quietly bringing hope to hundreds of young people with muscular dystrophy.

And, fittingly, the tireless 21-year-old campaigner, from Worminghall, took the lead at a Spirit of Christmas event in Christ Church Cathedral, St Aldate’s, Oxford, which raised more than £15,000 for the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign.

Laura, who has congenital muscular dystrophy, was invited to light the first candle at the special evening of festive carols and readings, which was hosted by the actor Matthew Kelly.

And there was a special surprise for Laura with her identical twin sister, Judith, who suffers from the same condition, travelling back from Keele, where she is studying at university, to be with her at the cathedral.

The Muscular Dystrophy Campaign chose the cathedral to host one of its popular Spirit of Christmas evenings for the second year running.

Last night more than 350 attended, some paying as much as £40 to support the event.

Matthew Kelly, vice-president of the charity, may well have made cathedral history by becoming the first man to give a reading from Willy Russell’s play and film Shirley Valentine.

Other celebrity guests included the actor Simon Williams, and Tracey Childs, who recently played opposite Matthew Kelly in a West End production of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?.

One of the most moving contributions came from 11-year-old Erskine Wylie, a pupil at Dragon School, who read extracts from books by his grandfather, the writer Quentin Crew, who died in 1998, aged 72.

Ms Merry said: “It was a really lovely Christmas event.

“It was the first Spirit of Christmas we have been to and it was good to see it so well supported in Oxford. I was just relieved that the candle lit first time.”

As youngsters, both sisters were familiar figures at Helen House and attend Douglas House, which provides respite care for young adults.

Philip Butcher, chief executive of the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign, said the event was part of the charity’s 50th birthday celebrations.

Since its creation in 1959 the charity has invested £100m in research into the muscle wasting disease. The concert was one of a series held at some of Britain’s most beautiful places of worship.

Guests in Oxford included Lord Mayor Mary Clarkson, and Professor Dame Kay Davies, whose university team has been prominent in finding treatments for the muscle-wasting disease Duch-enne Muscular Dystrophy.

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