'A great giggle', as farmers bare their all for Buckingham charity

If you need a calendar and didn't get one for Christmas, here's a suggestion that will benefit a Buckingham charity.

A crop of countryside folk have bared all in a calendar to raise money for Brain Tumour Research, founded by Padbury woman Sue Farrington Smith.

With nothing but agricultural attire and farming equipment to cover their modesty, 84 men and women from Devon – ably supported by some dogs, horses and a vintage Land Rover – stripped off to help find a cure for brains tumours, after a member of their community was diagnosed with the deadly disease.

Photographer Cat Down, from Cullompton, Mid Devon, shot the images at rural locations across the county.

She said: “I decided I would take my own kit off so I knew how it felt to pose naked in front of the camera.

"It’s an experience I don’t wish to repeat, however when photographing for the calendar I had extra empathy and connection with the people involved.”

There were memorable moments during the four weeks it took to shoot the calendar.

Cat said: “There’s one picture which was taken close to the main road, so we had a few people tooting their horns as they drove past.

"I also remember a few of the farmers couldn’t take their riding boots off.

"They would normally be wearing jodhpurs, which gives the boot some friction to slide them off but, because of the bare skin, it created a vacuum.

"So that made us laugh for a while on the day.

"I have to say it was also the biggest range of tan lines I’ve ever seen.

“It was a great giggle and all of us really wanted to do it for such an important cause.”

The calendar has so far raised an impressive £12,000 for Brain Tumour Research 40 than any other cancer yet historically just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease.

Charity spokesman Melanie Tiley said: “When we heard that farmers across Devon were posing naked for a calendar, we never imagined there’d be so many people willing to help, and the props have been used in a very creative way.

"It’s inspiring to see them join together as a community to find a cure for the disease.”

All proceeds from the sale of the calendar will go to Brain Tumour Research.

To buy a copy, visit livingourbestlives.co.uk/shop