Celebrities and stars light up this year's Carers Trust Christmas Carol Concert
Carers Trust was thrilled to be joined tonight for its annual Christmas Carol Concert by acclaimed actors Hugh Bonneville, Emma Thompson, Greg Wise and Derek Jacobi.
The concert, performed in the magnificent setting of St John’s Smith Square in central London, was streamed online instead of being held ‘live’ this year due to ongoing Coronavirus restrictions and the paramount importance of keeping everyone safe.
The stars delighted our online viewers with wonderful readings, each laced with a seasonal dollop of festive fun and cheer. Undeterred by performing alongside such an illustrious gallery of fellow readers, 12 year-old Lily-May, a young carer supported by Bromley Well Young Carers, gave a beautiful reading of Christmas Long Ago by Jo Gleis.
And even though we couldn’t be with them in the church this year, we were delighted that our great friends at the City of London Choir were able to light up St John’s Smith Square with their sublime singing. As in previous years, the choir treated everyone joining the concert to a beautiful programme of seasonal music – all under the expert baton of the choir’s inspirational director, Hilary Davan Wetton.
Every year, Carers Trust holds its annual concert as a fundraiser to help support its work for unpaid carers right across the UK. That support has never been more needed than this year, with unpaid carers having suffered more than most from the effects of the pandemic. So we were delighted that one of the UK’s best loved broadcasters, Angela Rippon, was on hand to deliver this year’s appeal, explaining just why unpaid carers need our support this year more than any other.
Carers Trust would like to offer its sincere thanks to tonight’s readers - Emma Thompson, Greg Wise, Hugh Bonneville, Derek Jacobi and Lily-May; Angela Rippon for giving the Christmas Appeal; the City of London choir and its director Hilary Davan Wetton for such beautiful music; and the Carers Trust Christmas Concert Committee led by Christine St. George.
