Talking the talk, walking the walk.

Byline: By Alison Dargie

A tyneside lawyer is inviting warring couples to talk through their troubles in the name of charity.

Christine McVay is bidding to raise thousands for charity by doing what she does best - helping couples through the legal minefield of splitting up.

She will give hour-long legal consultations for free - with clients asked to donate pounds 50 to cerebral palsy charity Scope in lieu of her fee.

It upends the old saying that the only winners in divorce are the lawyers.

Christine said: "I can offer advice on any area of divorce or separation including children and cohabitation as well as the financial things like asset division."

The next phase of her fundraising will see her ditch her smart suit and cosy office for the ice-capped mountains of Patagonia.

This autumn the 47-year-old mother-of-two will set off on a week-long trek through the Andes to the Patagonian ice-flows, traversing one of the most remote, beautiful and unforgiving landscapes on Earth.

She will carry most of her equipment and clothes on her back and by night she will pitch tent along the well-trodden mountain trails.

Christine heads for the hills in October but her quest for peak fitness is already well under way.

She said: "My job is quite sedentary so it will be a challenge for me to get fit enough to complete the trek.

"I have started going to spin classes and yoga and I'm looking out for a personal trainer to help get me into shape. I have never done anything like this before and the walk itself will be a huge challenge.

"I'm used to waking up having a hairdryer and make-up and things around me so having to do without all those things and maybe not even have a shower all week will be hard."

In between training she is staging a rock night at The Cluny pub in Byker, Newcastle, on June 19, where a range of gifts and prizes will be raffled or auctioned off.

She said: "Raising the money will be almost as much of a challenge as the trek itself but it feels good to be helping a charity that helps so many people."

Christine, from Jesmond, Newcastle, is divorced and has two grown-up children, who were both very proud of their mountain-climbing mother.

And she said one of her friends had been so impressed by her pioneer spirit she had decided to plan her own adventure to Ecuador.

Anyone interested in divorce advice or in making a donation to Scope should contact Christine or her secretary Gail Batey by telephoning [phone].