Celebrities supporting charities: the round up

A whole host of celebrities are supporting charities around the country this month and into the future, with a number of new ambassadors and patrons, as well as fundraising events such as football matches, charity lunches, and theatre performances.   Peter Capaldi & CHAS Geeky T-shirt Weekend Children’s Hospices Across Scotland (CHAS) is asking people to ‘get your geek on’ for Geeky T-Shirt Weekend. On Friday 3 and Saturday 4 May, CHAS is encouraging the public to show allegiance for their preferred science fiction and fantasy heroes. All supporters need to do is don their favourite geeky t-shirt on the day and donate £2 to the charity by calling 0141 779 6180 or visiting www.chas.org.uk/donate. Support has already come from Scottish actors Peter Capaldi and Billy Boyd, who have pledged to get their geek on for the occasion.   Anita Dobson & Thames Hospice Anita Dobson stars in a video for Thames Hospice, promoting its retail work and the money it raises through its range of charity shops for the hospice. Dobson is also an ambassador for the charity.   https://twitter.com/ParkTheatre/status/1115524951346425857 Celebrities & Park Theatre Park Theatre is presenting a special fundraising run of the World Premiere of Whodunnit [Unrehearsed] by Jez Bond & Mark Cameron in July, featuring the voices of Ian McKellen and Judi Dench, but also a different celebrity in each performance stepping in as the Inspector without any rehearsal and without ever having seen the script. Guests will include Gillian Anderson, John Bishop, Jim Broadbent, Ronan Keating, Damian Lewis, Maureen Lipman, Joanna Lumley, Meera Syal, Catherine Tate, Ruby Wax, Tim Vine and more. All money raised will go towards keeping the theatre open and furthering its work with the local community. The theatre needs to fundraise over £250,000 a year to keep the doors open.   https://twitter.com/MAA_Charity/status/1115281932789657600 James Arthur & Midlands Air Ambulance Charity X Factor winner and global star James Arthur will be taking part in the Midlands Air Ambulance Charity’s celebrity football match on Saturday 11 May at Walsall FC. Other stars already confirmed to take part in the game including fellow X Factor winner Shane Ward, Eastenders’ Jake Wood and TOWIE’s James Argent. Tickets for the match can be purchased online.   https://twitter.com/CureLeukaemia/status/1113421696311209986 Ben Foster & Cure Leukaemia Watford FC Goalkeeper Ben Foster has been announced as a Patron of blood cancer charity Cure Leukaemia. Foster has been a great supporter of the charity since he rode Cure Leukaemia’s London 2 Paris bike ride in 2015. He has helped raised over £10,000 for Cure Leukaemia through auctioning the match-worn shirts of his Premier League opponents which this season have included Liverpool’s Alisson Becker and Manchester United’s David de Gea. He has also supported Cure Leukaemia with numerous video messages for patients and supporters, helped the charity launch its £1m Appeal to expand the Queen Elizabeth Hospital’s Centre for Clinical Haematology in early 2017 and he donated a plaque for three years on a special wall that will soon be installed at the Centre in Birmingham.     Musicians & Youth Music Youth Music has appointed four new ambassadors. Presenter and multi-instrumentalist Myleene Klass (main image), electronic music duo Bicep, folk musician and band leader Kathryn Tickell and musician and film composer Ollie Howell (pictured). This is the charity’s 20th anniversary year. Since its foundation in 1999, three million children and young people – from early years through to early adulthood – have made music across England in projects funded by Youth Music, with support and funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England.   https://twitter.com/Hftonline/status/1115584228727644160 Valerie Singleton & Hft A charity lunch featuring TV legend Valerie Singleton has raised over £10,000 for an Hft service in Bedfordshire. The former Blue Peter presenter shared stories from her five decades in showbiz at the event, which was attended by 150 people at the Bedford Centre by Accor Hotel on 29 March. Flog It star and Rotarian David Fletcher was in attendance as celebrity auctioneer, encouraging bids for a range of lots including a ride in a Ferrari, family tickets to Bletchley Park and a case of fine wines. Headlining the afternoon was Valerie Singleton, who entertained the audience with highlights from her career.   New ambassadors in brief: https://twitter.com/mencap_charity/status/1113729998861557760 Coronation Street actor Liam Bairstow has become an ambassador for Mencap.   https://twitter.com/DallaglioRW/status/1115293051944042497 Wham’s Andrew Ridgeley has become an ambassador for Dallaglio Rugby Works.   https://twitter.com/ProstateCymru/status/1115581395928141825 Jules Lewis Jones has become an ambassador for Prostate Cymru.  

from UK Fundraising http://bit.ly/2VN0Q4I