A Comedy Night to remember!
Comedian and The Children’s Trust ambassador, Adam Hills MBE, was back to host our 10th annual fundraising Comedy Night on 28 February at The Comedy Store in London.
Thanks to the fantastic team at Off The Kerb we had an incredible lineup, including Jon Richardson, Russell Kane, Seann Walsh, Janine Harouni, Gráinne Maguire and Kyrah Gray. What’s more, we even had some surprise appearances from the king of one-liners, Tim Vine, and actor and comedian, Harland Williams, who was in London just for the night!
The night was a huge success, raising lots of laughs and money to support children with brain injury and neurodisability.
The event was a sell out and among the packed audience we were thrilled to welcome many young people and families who have been supported by The Children’s Trust to join in the fun.
One of Adam Hills personal highlights was meeting Zac and his awe-inspiring high spirits. In 2019, Zac was supported by The Children's Trust after acquiring a brain injury at the age of 16 following a ruptured arteriovenous malformation (AVM).
Zac told Adam, “The Children’s Trust changed my life and I am so grateful.” Now aged 22, he wants to inspire other children and young people who are in similar situations. Read more about Zac’s story.
On the night, Zac also became one of eight lucky winners to secure a Comedy Night poster signed by all the comedians at our auction.
The auction also saw Zac's family and another member of the audience battle it out for a set of four VIP tickets to The Last Leg with backstage passes to the Green Room, donated by Adam Hills. “Do I hear £450… £500… £550…” It didn’t look like either party was going to back down, so Adam generously decided to donate another set of four VIP tickets there and then to help raise even more money for The Children’s Trust.
Speaking exclusive to Adam backstage, an excited Zac said this has been:
the best night ever!
Another poignant moment of the night was during the interval when everyone learned about Riley who, at the age of 12, suddenly experienced an aneurysm and was rushed to hospital for life-saving surgery. The audience watched his story develop and saw how his rehabilitation programme at The Children’s Trust helped him to stand, walk and bake again. The end of the video was met with loud cheers from the audience, which included Riley’s mum Emma who Adam gave a personal shout out to. Read more about Riley’s story.
The night raised a total of £10,800 through ticket sales and donations, two auctions and a raffle draw with prizes including tickets to The Comedy Store.
We’d like to thank everyone who helped to make it such a memorable and successful night, including the comedians who donated their time and talent, the team at Off The Kerb for securing such a star-studded lineup, all the staff at The Comedy Store and each and every audience member who came to support us.
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