Brave diners dice with death

Masterchef's Gregg Wallace joined 60 daring diners, sampling a five course meal of potentially deadly food at Café de Mort. Located in a central London church crypt, Café de Mort is opening its doors for two nights, serving a menu of dangerous dishes which are potentially lethal if not prepared or cooked properly. Guests enjoyed the perilous Fugu or 'Pufferfish', flown in from Japan, which contains lethal levels if Tetrodotoxin which there is no known antidote for. They also ate Ghost Chilli, the world's hottest chilli, two dishes containing Hydrogen Cyanide and rounded off their night with a trio of potential toxins – Aflatoxin, Theobromine and Myristicin skilfully presented in the Peanut, Cacao and Nutmeg Sweetmeats dessert. The novel restaurant concept has been created as part of a campaign by Remember A Charity to encourage more people to leave a gift to charity in their Wills. A consortium of 140 charities, Remember A Charity hopes that diners will be reminded of the unpredictability of life and the importance of taking care of friends, family and the causes they hold dear. After all, nobody knows the importance of a having a Will more than someone who could be about to eat their last meal. Whilst three quarters of Britons regularly give to charity in their lifetimes, just 7% include a charity in their Will. Yet charities rely heavily on gifts in Wills, which bring in almost £2 billion each year, the equivalent of 19 Comic Reliefs. Many charities would not exist without this income and others would have to cut crucial services. Two out of three guide dogs and six out of ten life boat launches are paid for by gifts in Wills, as is over a third of Cancer Research UK's life-saving work. Gregg Wallace explained, "I was quite nervous about trying some of these dishes, but I've lived to tell the tale as have my fellow diners! While the meal was good fun, its aim was to highlight a serious point. Few people realise that gifts in Wills are vital to many of our favourite charities. We need to get more people thinking about leaving a gift once they've looked after their family and friends." Rob Cope, Director of Remember A Charity, said, "Some people may think Café de Mort is a bit extreme but it's hard to get people thinking about Wills and considering a gift to charity. The whole idea is clearly meant to be a little tongue in cheek. But there's a serious message too. Gifts in Wills are hugely important to charities. We believe Café de Mort will raise a wry smile but will persuade many more people to think about leaving a gift to charity too."