Music producers will be joining the Race for Life team at a number of the UK’s shopping centres to invite women to add their voices to the song, starting with Midsummer Place on Saturday 30 January, where women can also sign-up for their local event at the same time.  To take part in the single, budding female popstars just have to show-up at the centre anytime between 12pm – 6pm and visit the Race for Life stand, they will then be guided through the simple process of recording their very own part of the song. A full list of days and shopping centres participating can be found at www.raceforlife.org. The Race for Life stand itself will be open from 10am-6pm from Friday 29 - Sunday 31 January where women can find out more about their local event, sign-up on the spot and receive help setting up their fundraising page.

DJ and singer Sonique will be fronting the single. Sonique, who is currently undergoing treatment for breast cancer, will be joined by a line-up of female celebrities and a selection of women who have been personally affected by cancer, when they add their voices to the song, recording their lines in a studio. The female celebrity line-up includes singer and actress Kym Marsh, TV presenter Zoe Salmon, GMTV’s Penny Smith, actresses Lucy Benjamin and Caroline Quentin, Hollyoaks star Loui Batley, 80’s star Rozalla and model / entrepreneur Jo Wood.

Sonique, who is taking to the microphone for the first time since her diagnosis last June, said: “Cancer Research UK has never released a charity song before, and I’m immensely proud and thrilled to be part of their first single to launch this year’s Race for Life series. It’s great to see such a wide range of female celebrities and women who have been affected by cancer involved and it highlights how cancer really does touch everyone. ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ really embodies the spirit of the Race for Life events because, although there’s a serious message behind the activity, it really does feel like the ultimate girls day out! The fact that any woman, no matter how good her voice is, can take part in the song is great. Every woman in Milton Keynes needs to grab their best friend, sister, mother, daughter or even grandmother and come along, burst out a line of our song, and sign-up for a Race for Life at the same time.” 

Now in its 17th year, Race for Life is the UK’s largest women-only fundraising series, with over 230 events taking place this summer.  Women from across the UK come together to simply walk, jog or run 5k and raise money to help beat cancer. It’s not competitive and women of all ages, shapes and sizes take part each and every year. Since Race for Life began in 1994, there has been a 15 per cent drop in the death rate from cancer, something that money raised from Race for Life has helped to achieve. Last year over 700,000 women came together and raised an incredible £60 million to fund Cancer Research UK’s life saving work.

Each Race for Life event covers a distance of 5k and Cancer Research UK is encouraging women of all ages and levels of fitness to participate.  Furthermore, with the 2010 addition of being able to sign-up directly in the shopping centres, it has never been easier to take part. To sign up for a Race for Life event, or find out which shopping centres will have a direct sign-up facility, and for more information on how to take part in the ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ single, go to www.raceforlife.org