Lisburn man smashes his way into the record books and raises over £15,500 for charity

Starting off on July 16, Allister drummed for 150 hours, breaking the current record of 134 hours and five minutes.

Once verified and the paperwork and witnesses checked, he will enter the Guinness Book of World Records for the third time.

The Lisburn man, already a double world record holder was sleep-deprived for a week but was determined to test his physical and mental endurance to the limit to raise money and awareness for pancreatic cancer and mental health.

He finished his mammoth effort on Saturday July 22, playing in total 2,500 songs and has, to date, raised over £16,500 for charity.

The fundraising and world record attempt saw Allister drum almost continuously through night and day with friends, family, supporters and physios calling in to the Lisburn Music Centre to boost morale, keep him awake and ease the pain.

He took on this epic endurance event in memory of his late partner Sharon Deegan, whom he lost to pancreatic cancer in January 2021 aged 49.

Funds raised for local pancreatic cancer charity NIPANC will be invested into raising awareness about the symptoms of the disease, research and supporting families who face a diagnosis of this devastating illness.

Allister is also donating half the proceeds to the UK charity, Mind after struggling with mental ill health after nursing Sharon for over three years before she died.

Ali said: “I can’t thank people enough for all the support they have shown me over the past five days.

"My family, my friends, my amazing support team who have kept me going when the going on occasions got really tough. They have kept me watered, fed and awake.

“It’s thanks to them and all the support I have received from people, including strangers coming in to wish me well that I’ve managed to come this far.

"I really wanted to raise as much awareness about these two causes which are so close to my heart and I believe, together we’ve achieved that. I’m also grateful to the physio therapists who have given up their free time and skills to help me out.

“I have trained myself for the last ten months to cope with sleep deprivation by staying awake for 24 hours at weekends so my body and mind can get used to it.

“Guinness rules allow a five-minute break every hour which you can save up and it all has to be recorded and verified, so I accumulated the time to eat, take bathroom breaks and have power naps when I most needed them later in the week.”

Duncan Campbell, who previously played in the band, Universal Remedy with Ali and has been his friend for 30-years has played the lead role in ensuring his friend’s success.

“I’ve helped Ali through the last two world record attempts,” he said. “We’ve both learned so much since then about nutrition and the art of distraction in helping to keep him awake and performing. We’ve paid attention to what he eats, hydration and when he sleeps. Learning from the last two has really helped with this.”

You can still donate online at https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/drumathonlivegwr.