Nurse Alex Foley's 60-hour DJ set for The Cinnamon Trust

Update, 22 August 2026: Alex's JustGiving fundraiser now records £2,070 from 87 donations, plus £461.25 Gift Aid, for The Cinnamon Trust. The public page does not state whether every one of the planned 60 hours was completed, so direct confirmation is still needed before making that claim.

Original report, published 31 July: Alex Foley, a 31-year-old nurse from London, was preparing to DJ for 60 hours without a break, live-streamed on Twitch, to mark her mum's 60th birthday and raise money for The Cinnamon Trust. Her 60for60 set was scheduled from 10am on Friday 7 August to 10pm on Sunday 9 August, and with more than £9,000 already raised through her marathon sets, it was her longest and most ambitious plan yet.

From Facebook Live to a 60-hour set

Alex taught herself to DJ during the Covid lockdowns, encouraged by her nan, and built her confidence by going live on Facebook. She has since turned those skills into a run of charity marathons: a 24-hour set for Macmillan Cancer Support, a 30-hour set for Dogs Trust, a 42-hour set for Dementia UK, a 30-hour birthday set for Autistica, and, most recently, an 18-hour set for Cats Protection. Each one has run longer than the one before.

A birthday present in music

The 60-hour set is a present for her mum, Sarah, who turns 60. "My mum is a very special person. I love her so much," Alex says. "She does so much for other people." Sarah, a devoted ABBA fan, has quietly been learning a dance routine for a cameo appearance partway through the weekend.

Alex will not be at the decks for all 60 hours alone. More than 15 DJ friends have signed up to share the set across the weekend, each bringing their own style. Alex opens with chilled afro house and keeps things mellow with progressive house through the night hours to manage her energy. One track, though, is non-negotiable: her signature closer, "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." "It releases my anxiety and stress," she says. "And it makes my mum quite emotional; she knows it's my special song."

The full weekend line-up: more than 15 DJs sharing the decks across the 60 hours. Image courtesy of The Cinnamon Trust.

Managing a 60-hour challenge

Alex is autistic, and sustaining energy, managing sensory input and keeping going through the night hours over three days is a real undertaking. She approaches it, in the charity's words, with "characteristic determination," putting her love of music towards a cause that matters to her family.

Why The Cinnamon Trust

The Foley family are animal lovers, with a dog and five cats between them. Their dog goes to weekly training, and it was at the trainer's quiz night, with The Cinnamon Trust as the chosen good cause, that Alex's mum first heard about the charity's work with older and terminally ill pet owners.

Alex with the family dog. It was at their dog trainer's quiz night that the Foleys discovered The Cinnamon Trust. Image courtesy of The Cinnamon Trust.

"The Cinnamon Trust changes lives by helping people keep the pets they love," Sarah says. "As avid pet lovers, with a collection of mad rescues, it is great to find such a compassionate organisation which keeps people and their companion pets together."

Alex with one of the family's five cats. The Cinnamon Trust helps older and terminally ill owners keep pets like these. Image courtesy of The Cinnamon Trust.

Asked about her target, Alex sets the bar with a smile: "Given my mum's 60th, I'd love to say that my fundraising target is £60K." A long shot, she admits, but a nice thought. By day she is a nurse; the rest of the time she puts the same instinct into music. "I always want to help where I can," she says.

Fundraising page and original livestream details

Alex's set was scheduled to begin at 10am on Friday 7 August 2026 and close at 10pm on Sunday 9 August. The original livestream channel is twitch.tv/djalexfoley, and the verified public total remains available on her JustGiving page.

About The Cinnamon Trust

The Cinnamon Trust is the national charity for older and terminally ill people and their pets. Its volunteers help owners keep and care for their companion animals when age or illness makes day-to-day care hard to manage alone, and the charity steps in to look after pets when an owner no longer can. More at cinnamon.org.uk.

Published in partnership with The Cinnamon Trust. Story and images provided by the charity.