October 25th 2005 saw the launch of the Off Duty cookery book, which has been produced to raise funds to further the work of The Nicholls Spinal Injury Foundation.

Held in the magnificent elegance of the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park Hotel, the event was attended by many of the chefs who have given so generously of their personal favourite recipes, along with celebrities and other supporters of the aims of the charity.

After a short introduction by Gary Rhodes, David Nicholls spoke about the background to the setting up of the Foundation, laying out the reason for his personal dedication to the campaign to raise funds for research projects to cure spinal injury.

Guests were moved by his passion and integrity, with many making generous donations there and then. Over 800 books were sold on the night, representing a tremendous start to the campaign.