Australian violinist Glen Donnelly played Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending as he fell 15,000 feet in his birthday suit.

Violinist Glen Donnelly has made headlines by leaping from a plane 15,000 feet in the air with his instrument – in the nude. In a campaign to raise money for three men’s body image projects, the Australian violinist played Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending during the jump near Coffs Harbour, NSW, which took place on his 30th birthday. The feat has garnered Donnelly’s cause plenty of attention, with news organisations around the world ­– including the BBC and the Washington Post – picking up the story.

^{Violinist Glen Donnelly skydiving nude.}

For Donnelly, whose career as a violinist was put on hold in 2013 due to a severe body dysmorphic disorder, the jump is another step in his own journey towards healing and a chance to remove some of the stigma surrounding body image. “I want to tell my story and inspire others to come out and also tell their own,” he told Limelight in June...