High as a kite! Happy Mondays rocker Bez clutches his trusty maracas as he does loop-the-loop while wing-walking for charity stunt

Happy Mondays' Bez has shown he can do more than shake his maracas as he boarded the wings of a biplane to raise money for mental health.

Rocker Mark Berry, 56, faced the fear of the loop the loop in honour of his bandmates who 'had problems' with their mental health, raising money for the music charity TONIC.

He told the Daily Star Sunday: 'I thought I've been flying before, that was proper flying. I tried not to hold on but then I ended up holding on for dear life. There were some hairy moments when you are doing a nose dive with the loop the loop.'

Happy Mondays star Bez, born Mark Berry, wing walking to help raise money for TONIC, a music and mental health charity

Although Bez, once known for his drug-taking, is not shy of taking risks, he said that while he was willing to step on board, one thing he would never do was wear lycra.

Bez is also fighting for musicians at a time when livelihoods are being severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic, as gigs and performances are cancelled and many professionals in the arts are not eligible for furlough.

He told the Daily Star Sunday that he plans to write to Prime Minister Boris Johnson this week to ask that more be done to support musicians, actors and artists.

Rocker Mark Berry, 56, faced the fear of the loop the loop in honour of his bandmates who had 'had problems' with their mental health

Bez told the publication that he has also felt the effects of the pandemic financially and has had to cancel all work up until January with 'no end in sight.'

He added: 'Eventually I'm going to run out of money. And I don't think I should suffer that indignity.'

The musician said he did not want to sign on when he could be working, and said that the profession should also receive support from the government.

Step on! Although Bez, once known for his drug-taking, is not shy of taking risks, he said that while he was willing to step on on board, one thing he would never do was wear lycra

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