A North East teenager has used the power of laughter to help him pass his toughest test. A big smile appears on Olli's face when he’s asked how he got through a year-long fight against leukaemia that ended with him passing his GCSEs.

“Laughing at Bob Mortimer on the hospital telly!” he replies without hesitation.

Olli sat his exams in isolation on the kitchen table at home in Billingham after a bone marrow transplant saved his life. And he says laughter – inspired by watching Middlesbrough-born Bob and Olli's other comedy heroes – was key to helping him through the ordeal.

“While I was in hospital, I watched back-to-back comedy shows, like Would I Lie To You, Last One Laughing, and Taskmaster.

"Bob Mortimer’s my favourite comedian – and laughing at him got me through,” says Olli, a pupil at St Michael's Catholic Academy, in Billingham.

“When it came to the GCSEs, I underestimated myself. I didn’t think I’d do as well as I did, so I’m really proud of myself.”

Olli's family are also big comedy fans and they laughed along with him for countless hours in hospital. "Bob Mortimer's a genius and he has no idea how much he helped us cope through a really dark time," adds his dad, Mark.

The illness began in June last year when Olli started being sick and lacked energy. After Mum, Sarah, took him for a check-up at his local GP surgery,  there was enough concern for bloods to be taken at North Tees General Hospital.

That evening his mum, Sarah, took a call she'll never forget. It was Geoff Shenton, a consultant children's oncologist at Newcastle's Royal Victory Infirmary, and the message was to get Olli to the hospital as quickly as possible.

Within hours, he'd been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia, started on chemotherapy, and spent the next six weeks in the teenage cancer unit.

"I remember thinking we'd been dealt the worst possible hand," recalls Sarah. With chemotherapy making Olli poorly, and sepsis setting in, he was moved to intensive care, with a bone marrow transplant the only hope.

His mum, dad, sister Eve, 21, and brother George, 10, were unsuccessfully tested, but a match – a female donor in Germany – was found through the Anthony Nolan charity.

Olli had to undergo intense chemotherapy for 10 days before the transplant on September 11, and spend a month in isolation.

"After the transplant, we looked at the doctor's report on Olli's bloods every day, praying for them to kick back in – and, thankfully, they started to rise," recalls Mark.

After 12 days, the consultant came in, smiling, and announced: "The transplant's worked."

Apart from a setback in January, when a cold led to another bout of sepsis and a week back in hospital, Olli's condition has continued to improve.

"We're so grateful to the donor and we've started the process of trying to make contact with her, if she wants to meet us," says Mark.

When he was finally allowed home, Olli still needed to be kept safe from infection, so home-schooling arrangements were put in place by Stockton Borough Council to help him with maths, English and science. Lessons took place on the kitchen table, with the teachers wearing protective masks.

"In November, my long-term plan was to go back and do the school year again, but by March, I thought I could give the GCSEs a go," says Olli.

He sat the exams, again on the kitchen table, with Karen Stephenson, school therapist and part of the safeguarding team at St Michael's, acting as invigilator.

"The school was amazing in the way it supported us, and Karen was incredible – so motivating and passionate. She became a family friend," says Sarah.

Olli had to go on isolating until June but was able to go into the school, with his parents, last week to pick up his results.

Against the odds, he got a grade 7 (A) in maths, a 5 in English, and two 5s in combined science. Even though they hadn't been part of his revision, he also got a 6 in geography and a 4 in RE.

"He's done amazing," says his dad, unable to hold back the tears. "He just doesn't get fazed by anything – I'm just in awe of him."

"We couldn't be prouder of him," adds Sarah.

Olli has also had a message from his invigilator, Karen, saying: "It was a pleasure to work with Olli during his GCSEs. He is such a fun, happy young man who deserved the results he achieved.

"He should be so proud of what he has accomplished and I wish him all the best for the future."

Before collecting his results, he was presented with a 'Strength of Character' award by the school.

Olli was also able to attend the school prom at Wynyard Hall and be reunited with friends who've supported him throughout his illness.

His next step will be to study law, criminology and media at Bede Sixth Form College, with an ambition to pursue a career in law.

In the meantime, Olli has check-ups every eight weeks, and is also on a programme of holistic therapy. That includes spending time in an oxygen chamber at the Renew wellness centre, at the David Lloyd Health Club and Spa, on Teesside, to aid his body's natural recovery.

When Olli first went into hospital, Mark gave up his job as a refurbishment specialist, and Sarah stopped work at a pharmacy, so they could dedicate themselves to their son's care.

"I'd worked for 30 years but we were practically living at the hospital, so we had to put Olli's health first until we know he's fully back to health," explains Mark.

Over the years, Mark has raised tens of thousands of pounds for local good causes by taking part in fundraising events, including a parachute jump, four coast-to-coast cycle rides, and a charity boxing match in which he admits to getting "well and truly beaten".

Now, in response to local people asking how they can help support the family, a Go Fund Me page has been launched with two aims:

  • To get as many people as possible to donate blood.
  • To raise funds towards wellbeing therapies and aids that will help Olli feel stronger during ongoing treatment.

"We went from being a happy, normal, active family to living in a hospital, in charitable accommodation, and that was so humbling," says Mark.

"We need to stay focused on Olli's care for the foreseeable future but we're finally getting back to some kind of normality."

That normality still includes laughing at Bob Mortimer ­– but on the telly in the family home.