A GRANDMOTHER has become the oldest woman ever to be officially recorded as having walked the length of Britain.

Seventy-two-year-old Frances Tennant, from Darlington, made the 1,200-mile trek from Land's End, in Cornwall, to John O'Groats, in Scotland, with her friend Rupert Booth, 60, from Yarm.

Once they had finished the walk, the resilient pair even found enough energy to climb the UK's highest mountain, Ben Nevis, on their way back home.

They had initially attempted to scale the peak on their way to John O'Groats, but were defeated by bad weather.

Mrs Tennant, who has completed the Great North Run 18 times, was confirmed by the Land's End to John O'Groats Association as the oldest woman ever to complete the walk.

The pair clocked up an average of 17 miles a day, taking about three months to complete the walk. They were supported by Mr Booth's wife, Liz, who followed in a motor home.

They were initially going to do the walk for fun, but decided to make a it a charity trek and have so far raised more than £700 for the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation.

Mrs Tennant told The Northern Echo: "We had an absolutely fantastic time. It has been wonderful.

"Liz was the key to it all. We didn't have the hard job, she had the hard job. It was just like being a child - you went out to play and you came home, and your mum had the dinner on the table.

"We saw everything along the way - the wild flowers and the animals."

Mrs Tennant, who has three children and three grandchildren, said she felt reaching he top of Ben Nevis was a real achievement, especially after the pair's first attempt to reach the summit was thwarted by high winds and rain.

She said: "The first time we went up Ben Nevis, it was the day of the gale-force winds. We got half way up but we didn't get to the summit. When we got back down there were trees in the road which had been blown down.

"The second time was just elation. We got to the top after what we'd been through and that was just very exciting."

Adrian Cole, from The Land's End to John O'Groats Assocition, said: "As far as we're concerned, she's the oldest lady ever to complete the journey.

"I have cycled it twice and it is no mean feat. People who take on the journey know there is going to be highs and lows. I think it is amazing, remarkable, that she has done it."

* To sponsor Mrs Tennnant and Mr Booth, visit justgiving.com/rupert-frances