Maureen Lipman went out to bat for myeloma sufferers at a Lord's reception.

At the event, MCC chief executive Keith Bradshaw - who was diagnosed with myeloma in 2008 - announced plans for a September fundraiser for research into the bone marrow cancer.

Its centrepiece will be a game between a celebrity cricket side and a team of past and present football stars assembled by former Newcastle boss Joe Kinnear.

Anecdotal evidence suggests a substantially higher incidence of myeloma among Ashkenazi Jews and Ms Lipman says she wishes she had known about Myeloma UK when her late husband Jack Rosenthal was first diagnosed with the disease.

"I know I would have benefited from talking to someone on the myeloma infoline and from meeting other patients - and of course from the research Myeloma UK is funding." She is now a patron of the charity.