FORMER head boy at a St Albans school, Zak Brophy, is setting off on Friday on a month-long trans-Africa bicycle expedition. Born and brought up in St Albans where many of his friends and family still live, Zak, aged 26, was head boy of Verulam School an

FORMER head boy at a St Albans school, Zak Brophy, is setting off on Friday on a month-long trans-Africa bicycle expedition.

Born and brought up in St Albans where many of his friends and family still live, Zak, aged 26, was head boy of Verulam School and played rugby for OAs.

He is now a key worker for Centrepoint, the country's leading homeless youth charity, and is taking part in the Cycle of Life which will involve him and two young homeless people from Centrepoint in a 1,200-mile expedition across Namibia and Botswana.

They will be joining four other cyclists who are raising funds for the charity Tusk which funds projects in sub-Saharan Africa.

Prince William is a patron of both Tusk and Centrepoint and he had an informal meeting with the cyclists at Clarence House last week.

Zak has travelled around south eastern Africa before and is a keen cyclist.