Thirteen ladies from the Boatman Pub in Saltash have shed their inhibitions to produce a fundraising calendar that promotes a healthy diet and the fight against cancer. The high-quality, glossy calendar sees the self- styled Boatman Belles glamourously posed in local settings, using stocks of fresh fruit and vegetables to add splashes of colour – or to spare blushes. As well as delivering their message on diet and health, the women, who range from their teens to their early 70s, aim to raise money towards the Mustard Tree Macmillan Centre – the 'drop-in' at Derriford Hospital that offers support and advice to cancer patients. The calendar had its origins in the final hours of 2006 at the customers' New Year party in the Boatman. 'We dreamt it up in a hubbub of champagne corks, party-poppers and karaoke,' says project co- ordinator Stephanie Phipps. 'One of the men saw some of us, sitting on bar stools, all glammed up, and said: 'Hey – it's the Calendar Girls!' I think he'd been watching the Helen Mirren film on TV, but he didn't know what he was unleashing. 'By about 2am, we had enough volunteers to produce a calendar of our own, with the theme of healthy food and drink. 'The prevailing wisdom is that fruit and vegetables all contain anti-oxidants that can reduce the risk of cancer – and that wine and Champagne can also help.' To help with costs, the women secured hundreds of pounds of sponsorship from local businesses and held quizzes and curry nights in the Boatman. Volunteer Photographer and Boatman regular Warren Evans volunteered to take the photographs in locations that range from nearby Ince Castle to a local boatyard – and the Boatman itself. The pub's landlady Yvonne Coade appears in the calendar with her daughters, Andrea and Georgina. 'All of us were nervous about having our photographs taken,' said Stephanie, 'but everyone was brave enough to step out of their own personal comfort zone. And I have to say we're delighted with the results after so much planning and hard work. 'We now have a lovely tasteful calendar that celebrates local women and good health in a way which people of all ages will enjoy and appreciate.' Stephanie has her own deeply personal reasons for being involved with the project. Her first husband David died of cancer in 1993. Stephanie was herself diagnosed with breast cancer in 1996, which has since re-emerged as bone cancer. 'As a patient and a former Mustard Tree counsellor, I've seen the centre grow from next to nothing to its present level of service,' Stephanie says. 'The Mustard Tree takes the pressure out of difficult and harrowing personal situations. But it depends heavily on volunteer fundraising and needs £250,000 a year, just to keep going.' The Boatman Belles Charity Calendar will be on sale, priced £5, at Saltash Regatta on June 23 and 24. It also available at the Boatman, the Mustard Tree at Derriford Hospital, Tamar View Fruiterers at Carkeel, The Bookshelf in Saltash, Albert Cottage Veterinary Surgery and Profile (Saltash) Ltd, Hairdressers. You can also call 01752 842060 to get a copy.