A Jersey cancer campaigner is due to host Scotland’s fourth-biggest fundraising event which will see hundreds of medical students take their clothes off in aid of charity.
Express reporter Antonia Rubio has been invited to co-host the 11th Edinburgh Medics’ Reveal at the Edinburgh’s Usher Hall tonight to raise money for Teenage Cancer Trust.
The variety, dance and strip show will feature 250 nursing and medical students, who choreograph and perform in the event alongside their studies.
The Edinburgh Medics’ Reveal, which was started in 2014 by a medical student whose sister died of leukaemia, has so far raised £178,000 for charity.
This year’s organiser Elgan Manton-Roseblade said: “The Edinburgh Medics’ Reveal is so excited for Antonia to be co-hosting this year’s show.
“We’ve been inspired by how she’s shared her cancer journey and having personal experience with Teenage Cancer Trust makes her the perfect person to champion Reveal’s mission – creating a fun and supportive show for cast and audience, while fundraising for a fantastic charity.”
Antonia was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2023, and is now one year into remission.
She has grown an online following after candidly sharing her cancer journey on social media, and recently appeared on Good Morning Britain.
The 25-year-old said that the Edinburgh Medics’ Reveal was a particularly poignant fundraiser as many of those involved and in attendance are future medical professionals.
“They all are there because they want to help this great cause and raise money,” said Antonia.
“I’m really excited to be a part of something that’s so big.”
The event sold out in minutes in previous years and is this year hosted in its biggest-ever location, Edinburgh’s Usher Hall, which holds 2,000 people.
Antonia said: “It’s a long-standing tradition, but it takes effort from each individual, and they’re doing it for people like me, and that’s a really special thing.
“I feel like it’s going to be quite emotional as well.”
She joked that she has been watching last year’s show as “homework”.
“I’ve been doing a lot of homework because it’s really important that I do a good job, and not because there’s any sort of pressure, but because I want to do it justice,” she said.
Antonia added that she wouldn’t be stripping herself, but said attendees can expect “a lot of fun” and “good energy”.
She said: “I think it’s going to be a great night and, for me, it’s almost like another milestone in my journey.
“I’ve just celebrated one year in remission [from cancer] – it’s very emotional.
“It’s a very proud moment because I have about 10 friends coming who I’ve met through the cancer community, who’ve also had cancer, who perhaps are still going through treatment, going through their own struggles, and I’m really excited that I’ll be on stage representing the cancer community.
“That’s something that I’ve like been striving to do for a really long time.”