On Friday night the BBC hosted it's annual Children in Need telethon appeal. The BBC's first ever broadcast appeal for children was a five-minute radio broadcast on Christmas Day in 1927. The response was phenomenal and it raised £1,143 18s 3d which was split between 4 prominent children's charities. Friday's total on the night was over £26 million!
In 1980 the appeal was broadcast on BBC One in a new telethon format, hosted by Terry Wogan with Sue Lawley and Esther Rantzen. It captured the public's imagination to such an extent that the donations increased dramatically and broke the million mark for the very first time.
Terry Wogan remains the telethon's mainstay who has been joined by a diverse line-up over the years that includes Joanna Lumley, Sue Cook, John Craven, Andi Peters, Gaby Roslin, Natasha Kaplinsky and Fearne Cotton.
The famous Pudsey Bear made his television debut in 1985 when Terry Wogan introduced the new, brown cuddly mascot to the audience.
Pudsey was designed by Joanna Ball, a BBC graphics designer, who named him after the West Yorkshire town where she was born. He proved very popular and returned as BBC Children in Need's official logo the following year with his design amended to that of a yellow bear with a red spotted bandage.
Children in Need has a very simple vision:
Every child in the UK has a childhood which is:
- Safe
- Happy and Secure
- Allows them the chance to reach their potential
The BBC continues to support children in the UK who are at a disadvantage, for whatever reason, through it's charity appeals.
So help them help the children:
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