FRIENDS are rallying round to support a Dudley man who has been diagnosed with terminal cancer.

Darren Crossley, who is 37, and a former steel-mill worker from Milking Bank, has been battling lung and bowel cancer for the past three years.

Tragically he recently received the devastating news that the cancer had returned to his brain and was given between three and six months to live.

Friend Gemma Taylor-Whitehouse said: "I couldn't believe it when I heard the news. I've always spoken to Darren when we've been dropping our children off at Milking Bank Primary School, he has a wife Selena and two daughters, Scarlett, who is six and Payton, nine.

"He is very well known and well liked.

"I talked to my friends Clare Yardley and Ruth Simpson to see if we could do anything and decided to stage a fundraising evening for the family.

"We arranged to hold the evening at local The Meadowlark pub and put the event on Facebook. People started getting in touch and saying they wanted to come.

"In the end we had to find a bigger venue and went to the Baggeridge Social club instead which holds 200 people."

But that was to prove insufficient as people continued asking to come.

As a result, they had to hire a third premises and have now switched to The Venue in Dudley High Street, which caters for 600. The event takes place this Friday January 30 and will include live music together with a number of fund raising items including a raffle and auction.

The following day, some of Darren's snooker pals will be staging a 24 hour marathon for him.

They also paid out of their own pockets to send the family to Euro Disney.

Wife Selena said: "It was amazing. We were overwhelmed for what they did. It came completely out of the blue. They also arranged for Darren to go to the recent Masters tournament where he met Ronnie O'Sullivan.

"It was orgaised by some of Darren's friends in the West Midlands Snooker League. Darren played for Sedgley Working Men's Club and has known some of the players for over 20 years.

"We're really looking forward to Friday night and we've just been amazed by people's generosity from everyone on Milking Bank to the school, they've been absolutely wonderful."

Selena, who has given up her nursing career to help look after the family, added: "Darren has started radio therapy treatment and remains in good spirits, even though we've been told the situation is terminal."

Gemma said: "Darren has a wonderful attitude to life and doesn't give up easily. He's a fighter and will battle this right to the end."

For more information visit www.gofundme.com/jz1vrw