Niall Horan, Imelda May, Gavin James,  Dermot O’Leary and more went live for charity on June 11

You can watch back on The London Irish Centre's "Charity Night In" fundraiser event that was live-streamed on June 11 right here on IrishCentral:

Due to COVID-19, the London Irish Centre was forced to close on March 18 and cancel several large fundraising events, which has resulted in a significant financial loss.

Organizers had set their fundraising goal to £100,000, but ending up raising an impressive £110,000!

We've raised £110k! Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who has donated tonight you are BRILLIANT! #LondonIrishNightIn

— LDNIrishCentre (@LDNIrishCentre) June 11, 2020

Niall Horan, Imelda May, Gavin James, and more Irish celebrities from across the UK and Ireland joined in for the live show:

The evening also included a charity auction with the opportunity to win great prizes from Ed Sheeran and others, all for a good cause. The event is being produced with supporting partner The Lock Inn, an online events venue.

Irish television presenter Dermot O’Leary, who is among the Irish celebrities to appear during the Charity Night In, said: “I am very proud to be patron of The London Irish Centre. The LIC does amazing work across London, and right now, they need our support. As it’s not possible to run our usual fundraising events, I’m thrilled that our friends and supporters are joining us for a little online fundraising adventure!”

The following Irish celebs made an appearance during the London Irish Centre's successful fundraising event:

  • Aisling Bea
  • The Blizzards 
  • Ciaran Cannon
  • Richard Corrigan
  • Emma Dabiri
  • Damien Dempsey
  • Lisa Dwan
  • Felispeaks
  • Laura Whitmore
  • Lisa Hannigan
  • Loah
  • Jack Lukeman
  • Niall Horan
  • Gavin James
  • Lorraine Maher
  • Imelda May
  • Eoghan McDermott
  • Siobhan McSweeney
  • Mundy
  • Dara O’Briain
  • Dermot O’Leary
  • Liam O’Maonlai
  • Jarlath Regan
  • Maverick Sabre
  • Angela Scanlon
  • Robert Sheehan
  • Stephen James Smith

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About the London Irish Centre

The London Irish Centre first opened its doors in 1955 to meet the needs of newly arrived Irish emigrants. Initially providing accommodation and welfare, the centre quickly became an important social and cultural venue. 

Today, the charity continues to be the Irish Heart of London - the largest Irish community centre outside of Ireland and the largest Irish welfare charity in Britain. 

Its mission is to provide outstanding Irish Care, Culture and Community in London and they continue to serve the local and Irish communities in London 7 days a week, 52 weeks of the year. 

Each year, the LIC supports over 2,000 individual clients through advice, outreach, befriending, crisis grants, dementia clubs, lunch and social clubs and over 20,000 attend arts, culture and educational events.  In total, over 75,000 people visit the Centre yearly. 

The COVID-19 crisis has had a huge effect on the LIC’s capacity to provide this support, especially to London’s large older Irish community, who are especially vulnerable and those more recently made vulnerable.

The Centre closed its doors on Wednesday, March 18 and responded to the pandemic by reshaping its services: increasing web and telephone support to deliver over 1,100 advice sessions and 1,000 health check-in calls, training up over 30 telephone befrienders, engaging over 200 volunteers, and providing over 2,000 hot meals and food parcels to the community and becoming the first Centre shielding the vulnerable in Camden.

They have also announced the SOLAS Season - a curated series of online culture and community to keep us all connected and inspired during challenging times. This includes concerts, storytelling, classes, and talks.

Ellen Ryan, CEO at The London Irish Centre said: “I am so proud of the way we have all pulled together as a community through this crisis. Staff, volunteers, and our friends have worked hand in hand to ensure that we deliver the services and cultural output needed to enable the community to feel a sense of hope and resilience for the future. 

“We have also received crucial support from the Irish Government and Irish Embassy, London, and our partners at Camden Council. This very special event is your opportunity to join us and support our essential work to enable us to continue our recovery into the future.”

You can learn more about the London Irish Centre and its Charity Night In on its website, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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