Gallery
Items donated by Ed Sheeran, Ricky Gervais, Coldplay and Dawn French raise £53,000 for charity
Online auction selling items from Ed Sheeran, Delia Smith, racehorse Enable, Ricky Gervais, Coldplay, Dawn French and more raise over £53,000 and counting for East Anglia's Children's Hospices charity. Griff Rhys Jones his pictured with his Mel Smith bust. Picture: EACH - Credit: Archant
Items donated by Ed Sheeran, Delia Smith, racehorse Enable, Ricky Gervais, Coldplay and Dawn French have raised more than £53,000 for the East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices charity.
The Celebrity Bottom Drawer auction, organised by comedian and presenter Griff Rhys Jones as part of his annual festive fundraising for EACH, launched on November 27 and bidding will end on Sunday at 10pm.
As of Wednesday morning, the best-performing lots were:
• Headcollar worn by Enable, signed by John Gosden and EACH Ambassador Frankie Dettori - £4,800
• Dawn French’s Datejust Rolex - £4,200
• Bronze bust of Mel Smith, from the estate of Mel Smith - £4,000
• Cate Blanchett’s deluxe box of ‘Carol’ film goodies - £2,000
Most Read
- 1 Mexican restaurant to open inside former Frankie & Benny's in Ely
- 2 Ely Road closed as pedestrian hit in Littleport
- 3 Village road closing for five weeks for temporary barrier installation
- 4 Soham tribute to 'honest, funny, intelligent and understanding human being'
- 5 'A little talent very thinly spread' Mike Rouse, in his own words
- 6 Breakup and burglary! Couple's chaos after £101m win on Euromillions
- 7 Inferno BBQ to be occupied by sister company Forbidden Burger Co
- 8 Ex-soldier Rob on a mission to bring 'ideas and energy' to Ely
- 9 Students ‘over the moon’ to receive letter from The Queen during project
- 10 Mike Rouse, councillor, former mayor and historian, dies aged 82
• Daniel Laurie’s PlayStation 5 - £1,525
The auction also included items from Ipswich Town and Norwich City, plus a visit to Holkham Hall and a week’s stay at a Welsh cottage restored by Griff.
Mr Jones said: “We can’t as easily do the sponsored stuff. The church halls are shut. The shops have been closed.
“So, I put the word out and we started our own charity second-hand site that had only celebrity cast-offs.
“If you’re searching for a Christmas present for a granny who’s nuts about Game of Thrones or an uncle who always does his Mick Jagger impression, we have unique authenticated GOT and Stones items for you.
“You have to go on the website to have a look and choose a Christmas memento for someone you know. There’s a good chance one of your favourite stars or shows will be there.”
This year EACH has experienced a hugely significant drop in voluntary income as a result of shops being closed and fundraising events being cancelled.
Just before the second national lockdown, the charity forecasted a loss of £1.7m in funding over the next 12 months - almost a third of the total it needs to support families across East Anglia.
Lots can be viewed now on www.celebritybottomdrawer.com. To donate to EACH visit www.each.org.uk/donate.