BBC Children In Need raises over £35 million in under three hours

The appeal show for BBC Children In Need 2019 has raised more than £35 million in just a few hours.

Viewers donated £35,383,512 in just the first two-and-a-half hours of the annual appeal programme, improving on last year’s total of £33,949,774 donated within the same time period.

Co-hosts Tess Daly and Ade Adepitan kicked off before Mel Giedroyc and Graham Norton took over for the remainder of Friday night’s TV fundraiser, broadcast live from the BBC’s Elstree Studios.

EastEnders stars Maisie Smith, Rudolph Walker, Louisa Lytton and Ricky Champ competed in the Strictly Come Dancing ballroom in aid of BBC Children In Need.

Smith, who was paired with Kevin Clifton, lifted a special Pudsey Glitterball Trophy after being judged the best of the bunch.

Judge Craig Revel Horwood kicked off the four-way group performance to Dancing In The Street with his best Peggy Mitchell impression.

From behind a mock-up of the The Queen Vic’s bar, he told the group: “It’s closing time. Sling your hook and get out of my pub,” before adding: “Darlings.”

Daly also revealed that some of the money raised will go towards those affected by the flooding across the country.

She said: “We also want to take a moment to send our love to the families who have been affected by the recent flood across part of England.

“Communities have really come together and we want to help so Children In Need is planning on making additional funding available to support families who have been affected through its emergency essentials programme.”

BBC Children In Need’s annual rickshaw challenge, led by Matt Baker from The One Show, raised £8,521,680.

This year’s challenge saw six young people cycle 400 miles from Holyhead in Wales to Elstree Studios, arriving during the live broadcast.

The star-studded fundraiser also saw famous faces including John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Danny Dyer, Nadiya Hussain, Rupert Grint and the Countryfile team appeal for donations.

The cast of Big The Musical, including Jay McGuiness, kicked off the night with a rendition of Cross The Line from the stage show.

Jodie Whittaker surprised a Doctor Who superfan with autism, while fitness coach Joe Wicks highlighted the work he has been doing around the country in aid of BBC Children In Need.

The BBC Children In Need choir, made up on 1,400 boys and girls from around the country, sang True Colours by Cyndi Lauper, some via videolink.

In a pre-recorded video, a group of young players from the England Amputee Football Association met with England football stars Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling and Marcus Rashford.

Among the boys was James, who said: “I love football. That pitch is where I belong.”

England manager Gareth Southgate introduced James, who takes part in the project funded by BBC Children in Need, as one of the UK’s “most promising amputee footballers”.

He said: “Football is my life, I love it now I am a manager, I loved it when when I was a player and I loved it when I was a kid kicking a ball around the park.

“The young man I am about to introduce to you share all of that passion.”

And earlier this week, Rylan Clark Neal sang non-stop karaoke for 24 hours, with Norton announcing during Friday’s programme that he had raised a total of £1,086,261.

The presenter, 31, took on a total of 236 songs during his so-called Great Ka-RY-oke Challenge, assisted by celebrities including Nicole Scherzinger, Craig David and Rick Astley.