S-miles ahead for motorists in a jam

The sat nav is not only the friend of the dyslexic map-reader – it can now help bring some laughs on a long journey as well.

Motorists are being invited to download a series of comedy sketches that will help break the boredom of journeys on the M6.

It means landmarks like the M6 Toll and the RAC Centre will never appear the same again for motorists who subsribe to the collection, called 230 Miles of Love.

The project is the brainchild of Stafford-born writer Andrew Shanahan, who hopes to raise £23,000 to provide wheelchairs for people in developing countries by asking for donations from those who enjoy his work.

The sketches, which are often a little risque, include a phone call to the RAC about a man who has his car stuck in a very unusual place and the two minute piece plays as drivers pass the breakdown service's control centre near Junction 9 at Wednesbury.

As drivers go past Junction 20 they get to hear all about the Thelwall Viaduct's exhausted poet-in-residence and as they approach the M6 Toll road they hear For Whom The Toll Tolls, the only game show that asks whether you are going to risk getting stuck in traffic on the original M6 or take the Toll.

The sketch ends differently depending on which way the driver goes.

A comedy commentary of a disastrous football match, filled with cliches, greets drivers on the way past Villa Park at Spaghetti Junction.

Professional comedians John Warburton and Louise Conran have worked with up and coming talents like John Thorp, Chris Rea and Mel Moon to create 230 Miles of Love. It can be downloaded mainly on Garmin satnavs but other systems may be able to store the files as well.

Former Newcastle High School pupil Mr Shanahan, aged 30, said: "The M6 is an ideal location and subject for comedy. Hundreds of thousands of people use the road every day, which gives you a ready-made audience and even better is that nearly every traveller wants to entertained."

Money raised will be donated to The Motivation Charitable Trust, which provides wheelchairs to people in developing countries. People can visit www.230milesoflove.com and download the sketches on to their satnavs for free.