Towering achievement for NHS worker Martin

And in doing so, they raised £3,000 towards a much-needed scanner in the hospital’s accident and emergency department.

Organiser Martin Lammie, 28, put together the challenge, and somehow talked his friends into taking on the abseil from Peniel Heugh tower, near Jedburgh.

He told us: “Well, they were friends before I talked them into doing it.

“The view from up the top of the tower was absolutely gorgeous, but not many were able to take it all in, given the task they had ahead.

“The hardest part, though, was when you first climb over the barrier, and you realise there isn’t anything to stand on.

“Once we got going in a downward direction, it was ok.”

He added: “I’d like to thank all those who agreed to do the challenge, and everyone who sponsored them in order to make the fantastic total.

“And we couldn’t have done it without the expertise of Nic and Jess from the Edinburgh Climb Centre, who provided the equipment and ensured it was safe for everybody.”

Martin, who lives in Galashiels, has no intentions of stopping there.

He may have a bit more trouble talking his friends into his next challenge, however.

He said: “I was thinking along the lines of a bungee jump off the top of the Forth Road Bridge.”