Cardiac Health is celebrating its 50th birthday with a special talk from the man who brought cardiac rehab through exercise to Alton - Dr Hugh Bethell.

His exerciser talk, called Don't Kill Granny, will be held at the Alton Assembly Rooms on July 2. There will be complimentary welcome drinks from 7pm before the talk starts at 7.30pm.

Cardiac Health began in 1976 when local GP Dr Bethell convinced Alton Sports Centre to host the first community cardiac rehab programme in the UK, taking the service out of hospital care and adding exercise as the “magic ingredient” for better recovery.

He worked closely with personal trainer Allan Larvan and physiotherapist Sally Turner to develop a medically-led exercise programme which has improved the lives of thousands of people and still underpins the exercise programmes at Cardiac Health.

Fifty years after founding the cardiac rehab programme, Dr Bethell is stepping down from his trustee role at Cardiac Health and this will be his final exerciser talk before he retires.

Don't Kill Granny will cover a range of topics, from his inspiration for the first cardiac rehab programme right up to the pressing need to find ways to cure an “epidemic of frailty” as the population ages which is affecting the lives of elderly people and costing the country billions of pounds.

Dr Bethell evaluated the research and concluded that exercise was the key to preventing frailty.

He said: “If you want to remain independent into your 80s or 90s, you need a certain level of fitness. That doesn’t happen by accident, it must be part of your life.”

Tickets for Dr Bethell’s Don’t Kill Granny talk will cost £18 and can be obtained by visiting the Cardiac Health charity in Chawton Park Road, or booked online at https://cardiachealth.org.uk/events