Comedian Joe Lycett joined Radio 1’s Greg James on a tandem bike as he left the city on 1,000km Comic Relief challengeGreg James and Joe Lycett avoid massive pothole in Birmingham

Anyone who has driven around Birmingham this winter knows how it feels to dodge potholes on almost every road.

And this morning the issue was broadcast live to the nation when Radio 1 Breakfast Show host Greg James narrowly avoided what he called “the world’s biggest pothole” as he headed out of the city on a Comic Relief charity challenge.

The presenter and podcaster is on a 1,000 kilometre tandem bike ride from Weymouth in Dorset to Edinburgh ahead of Red Nose Day on Friday, March 20.

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Briefly occupying the other seat on the bike as James left Birmingham via Sutton Coldfield was comedian Joe Lycett. They were on the A4540 Highgate Middleway when the DJ, who was being filmed for a live stream, avoided a crater in the road.

He told listeners: “I’ve just avoided the world’s biggest pothole then.” Lycett responded tongue-in-cheek: “Well that’s Starmer’s Britain for you Greg.”

Today’s leg of the journey saw James wave at crowds who gathered to cheer him on as he headed to the stage end at Worksop in Nottinghamshire – a gruelling 146.8km in one day and the longest so far.

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He said: “I was a bit daunted this morning by staring at five days more of this. But I’m getting through it. The donations gave me a huge boost. Joe Lycett gave me a full guided tour.

“We are motoring now. We’ve gone through some amazing places today. There have been some amazing primary schools coming out to line the streets.

“I’m just so determined now, even though my legs are screaming at me.”

The state of Birmingham’s roads has become a political football ahead of May’s all-out local elections.

Tories on the city council condemned the Labour-run authority for resurfacing less than a mile of road in the last full financial year – 2024/2025. The Conservative group said the council had failed to spend some £200 million of ringfenced cash for road repairs, with £47 million not spent in the last year alone.

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But city transport boss Coun Majid Mahmood said spending had been ramped up this year. He said: “Due to conversations with the government around the future of PFI funding, a decision was made to reduce budgets for all non-essential highways maintenance for the financial year 2024/25.

“Since then, around £13million has been invested in the 2025/26 financial year to resurface roads. During this time, the council undertook around 5,000 urgent repairs and 14,700 non-emergency repairs to fix potholes on Birmingham’s roads.”