Speedo Mick to be made a Liverpool Citizen of Honour

Speedo Mick will be made a Liverpool Citizen of Honour in a ceremony next month.

Speedo, whose real name is Mick Cullen, will receive the award from the Lord Mayor of Liverpool a year after completing his final walk, raising a total of £1million for charity.

He says he’s proud to be recognised by the city for his incredible treks in all weathers wearing just his trademark blue swimming trunks.

He said:

“If they were to make me the King of Ireland, I’m never going to get a bigger accolade than this, because it’s from my home city, the most friendly, kind people on the planet,”

“Liverpool has been wracked with poverty for such a long time but we’re still full of generosity so that’s why I’m really really proud of this.

“The city has been so hugely supportive of everything I’ve done, so I do feel like I’m receiving this award on behalf of all those people who gave me a beep on the walks, and who gave me their handfuls of cash on the way. Sometimes people would be dropping coppers in the bucket because that’s all they had but they still wanted to give something, no matter how small, and that was special.”

Mick has been very open about his struggles with mental health and addiction in the past, so he says he hopes the award is an inspiration for other people too.

Speedo Mick in Cornwall on the last leg of his walk

“Being given this massive honour has helped me to reflect on my life. Obviously before I was homeless and I was that wrapped up in addiction, my life was going one way and that was down.

“To be receiving an award like this, it just shows you once again that there is hope for every person out there. You can recover and you can get your life back. You can make a few bad decisions and you think it’s all over but it’s not and that’s hopefully the message of my story.

“Getting one day clean was the beginning of the story and that has led to all the adventures and to me making a positive contribution to society.

“I’ve managed to turn my life around after reaching out for help 22 years ago and I haven’t looked back since.

“This has been one hell of a journey for me. Liverpool really does come together for justice and for any good cause. They’ll always take a good cause into their hearts and I’ve been very lucky to be one of those causes.”

Mick and his family will attend the ceremony at the Town Hall on Thursday May 9, when he’ll officially be admitted to the Roll of Citizen of Honour of the City of Liverpool by Lord Mayor Cllr. Mary Rasmussen.

And this time at least, Mick will be happy to leave his famous blue Speedos at home.

“The invitation says ‘dress code: lounge suit, no Speedos’ but I think I’ve been in them long enough,” he jokes. “They’ve served me well those knickers!”