BBC Children in Need raises £17.1 million by 2am, £1.1 million online
The 25th BBC Children in Need campaign had raised £17,156,175 by the end of the telethon’s night of entertainment, more than had been raised at the same point last year.
The final total is expected to be considerably more, as supporters send in all the cash they have raised at fundraising events across the UK.
The total at the end of the BBC1 telethon was £1.8m higher than the same time last year, which itself was the most it had raised at that point. Last year’s campaign raised a total of over £30 million for the first time in its history.
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BT handled 362,000 calls from viewers across the country during the telethon, with more than 50 call centres in operation. BT handled the online donations for the campaign. By the end of the seven-hour celebrity-packed show over £1,116,000 had been received.
Terry Wogan and Gaby Roslin presented the the show, the BBC’s biggest broadcasting event, which links BBC centres all over the country.
BBC Radio 2’s ‘Things that money can’t buy’ auction raised £1 million this year.
Lots included the chance to appear with Terry Wogan and some of the cast of EastEnders in a specially-written sketch set in The Queen Vic; a private ‘at home’ performance from Katie Melua; a special tour around the 40-acre Buckingham Palace; and a SmartCar signed by the England Rugby World Cup-winning squad.
AtBBC Radio Cambridgeshire DJ Max Rushden broadcast for over 100 hours, breaking the world record for the longest on-air marathon. He raised more than £4,000 for the appeal.
This year’s fundraising activities have included:
- Anita and Lloyd Foster, of Normanton, West Yorkshire, who got married dressed up as Teletubbies.
- Matthew Heseltine, 13 and Nicky Ling, 12,
from Branshaw Mount, who asked people they knew to chuck eggs at them for 50p a shot.
This year’s principal corporate supporters were ASDA, BT, Boots and HSBC.