"Bean found out in January that he had cancer; multiple tumours all over his body. So far he has had surgery to remove tumours on his brain, and two rounds of aggressive chemo. Bean doesn't yet have a full diagnosis, but the hope is that he has 'germ cell' cancer, which has a good survival rate with the right treatment."

Three for the price of one slideshow at the Maynard, Grindleford, on Sunday 12th June

Bean Bowers is an American climber, alpinist, skier and all round tough guy, recently diagnosed with cancer. He is currently on his fourth round of chemo in his fight against the disease, but unfortunately, in the States, even having good health insurance doesn't guarantee that the cost of your treatment is covered. In a best case scenario, Bean, and his wife Helen, could be left with debts running into hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Bean isn't particularly well known in the UK, but has climbed with some of Britain's best climbers and alpinists. The fundraising effort by his friends in the States has been huge (see www.beanfever.com), and some of his friends in the UK decided to run an evening of slideshows and auctions to help. They include:

Adam Long: Ground-Up Gritstone

Adam's images frequently feature in the climbing and national press, and he is well known for his strict ethics and abilities on the grit. “Over the years I've travelled widely, both to climb and to photograph, but I find the depth of work that can be created on your home patch can be just as rewarding. The Peak District is a great place to live and work, after fifteen years here it still has secrets to reveal, and unique moments to capture.”

Ben Bransby: Patagonia; Watching the Weather

Ben last climbed with Bean in Patagonia, when Bean was the driving force behind a number of first ascents and first free ascents...

Leo Houlding & Jason Pickles: The Prophet

In 2010, after a 10 year effort, Leo and Jason finally freed The Prophet – “I originally attempted it from the ground up with Jason Pickles; no aid, no fixed ropes, no drill, in-a-day. It's quite harrowing - hardest climbing I've done ground up” (Leo).

A world exclusive – Leo and Jason have never before presented a slideshow together!

Tombola and Auction

Between the slideshows there will be a tombola and auction, with prizes donated by: DMM, Patagonia, UKClimbing, Mick Ryan, Evolv, Berghaus, The Climbing Works, Vertabrate Publishing, Posing Productions, Outside, Metolius and possibly even more!

The BeanFever Fundraiser Lectures; 7pm The Maynard, Main Road, Grindleford.

Tickets: £10 available from Outside Hathersage, The Climbing Works and benbransby@hotmail.com