The Shard.

THE father of a Royal Marine has followed in the footsteps of royalty – by plunging off the Shard.

Simon Allen from Bury St Edmunds abseiled down the shard.

Simon Allen, 48, of The Elms, Horringer, joined the Duke of York and more than a dozen others as he abseiled Europe’s tallest building, in central London.

Mr Allen, who has pledged to raise £25,000 for the Royal Marines Charitable Trust Fund (RMCTF), said he was inspired by his son Luke, who serves with 40 Commando. After completing the 309-metre descent, he said: “It was good, but I don’t think I want to do it again.”

Mr Allen, said whatever anxiety he faced, it was nothing compared to those serving on the front line.

He added: “My son Luke served in Afghanistan in 2010 and whilst he has returned a stronger man, 14 of his friends didn’t return and almost 100 men were injured. The money raised goes to the needy families of the men killed in action, as well as those that return from operations with either mental or physical challenges they didn’t have pre-operation. The Ministry of Defence does its best, but sometimes its best isn’t enough and the RMCTF fills the gap.”

Hours before Mr Allen stepped off the edge of the Shard yesterday, the Duke of York, 52, abseiled down the skyscraper to raise money for RMCTF and the children’s charity Outward Bound. To support Mr Allen visit www.justgiving.com/Simon-Allen2