DAREDEVIL parents Ryan and Julie Mulvey have put their lives on the line to help find a cure for their seriously ill son.

Eight-year-old Dillon was diagnosed with the rare muscle wasting condition Duchenne muscular dystrophy last year.

There is no known cure for the disease and the Pirbright Primary School pupil will soon be confined to a wheelchair.

Both parents showed they have a head for heights as dad Ryan climbed Mount Kenya while mum Julie did a skydive a little closer to their Herons Way, Brookwood, home.

But trudging up the African mountain Ryan had unwisely mistaken for a molehill was not as straightforward as expected.

“You don’t get much sleep during the climb and are forever waking up in the night and taking on liquids just to stay hydrated.

“I was nursing a constant hangover as we didn’t have any time to acclimatise – it was just a case of pushing through.  But it was a tremendous experience and something I can tick off my bucket list.”

Ryan returned from his expedition just in time to watch wife Julie throw herself out of an aeroplane. “I was the first one out, but not by choice,” Julie said. “It was a first come, first serve jump and I happened to be closest to the door.

“On the way down I was thinking: ‘Why the hell am I jumping out of an aeroplane?’

“You can’t really catch your breath until the parachute opens but when it does it’s lovely to glide down – it’s very peaceful. The instructor said I was a natural.”

The skydive and climb raised more than £2,000 for the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign.

Next on the agenda for the determined family is a charity dinner night, Dillon’s Dinner for Duchenne.

Ryan said: “We decided on the name because we wanted the evening and everything that surrounds it to be associated with Dillon.

"We imagine this is going to be our last big charity push for the year and we’re hoping to make it a very special night.

“We’re working exceptionally hard to pull out all the stops and give everyone a night they won’t forget.”

Held at Lakeside Country Club, Frimley, on May 12, the black tie event will consist of a three-course dinner, live music and entertainment and an auction complete with teller.

Lots include an autographed pair of Ricky Hatton boxing gloves and a signed Arsenal football shirt.