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Francis House: Big congratulations for turning 30! 150 150 mhamer

Francis House: Big congratulations for turning 30!

Big Congratulations to Francis HouseCH who have officially turned 30yrs old pictured here at the official opening is Princess Diana alongside the instigator of the project Sister Aloysius, and me with the original architect and now Director David Ireland #supportyourlocalhospice

Jimmy Cricket has congratulated his favourite charity, Francis House Children’s Hospice, for turning 30 years old.
Francis House reached the memorable milestone on Thursday 25 November.
Jimmy said on social media: “Big Congratulations to @FrancisHouseCH who have officially turned 30 yrs old.
“Pictured here (see photo above) at the official opening is Princess Diana alongside the instigator of the project Sister Aloysius.
“And me with the original architect and now Director David Ireland #supportyourlocalhospice.”
Jimmy has raised more than half-a-million pounds for the south Manchester charity over the years.
That is thanks to countless touring shows and parish hall events across two decades.
Came across this Francis House booklet sent to me by @FrancisHouseCH because of my involvement over the last eighteen years of fundraising, with my good friend Jim Nicholas. The Hospice was first conceived by Sister Aloysius and Fr Mulheran, now run by the architect and Pastor David Ireland.
Based in Didsbury, Francis House cares for children and young adults with life-threatening conditions.
It provides a home from home where families receive professional care, support and friendship.

Sister Aloysius and Fr Thomas Mulheran set up the Rainbow Family Trust in the early 1990s as a charity.

They were concerned about the lack of palliative care for the families of children with a short-life expectancy.

The late Diana, Princess of Wales, officially opened the seven-bedroom Francis House in November 1991.

Francis House replied: And we love this fun pic of you from your 70th fun run and one of Jim on the back cover!

Read a timeline of the history of the hospice’s history here

Also see: Francis House benefits from Rochdale ‘jam’ night

To celebrate its anniversary, the hospice is asking supporters, staff, volunteers and families to share their favourite memory.

Share your memories here

Also read: Francis House: 18 years of fundraising for hospice

Golden Memories: Performing in front of Princess Diana 150 150 mhamer

Golden Memories: Performing in front of Princess Diana

As lockdown continues to #SaveOurNHS I have been looking at nostalgic memorabilia from over the years, all have given me a warm glow, none more than this one when I performed alongside my fellow entertainers in front of the Queen Mum, Prince Charles and Princess Diana, at a time when Variety was King!

Jimmy Cricket has worked with many great fellow entertainers in 50 years of showbusiness.

The lovable Northern Irish comedian has also performed in front of some very famous people.

Jimmy, now 74, has been reminiscing on social media about taking part in the Royal Variety Performance in 1984.

The show took place on 19 November at the Victoria Palace Theatre in London.

Royal guests were the Queen Mother, Princess Diana and Prince Charles.

Also among the performers were singer/actor Paul Nicholas and comedians Bernie Winters and Billy Dainty.

The Royal Variety Performance is a televised variety show held annually.

It raises money for the Royal Variety Charity, of which Queen Elizabeth II is life patron.

Senior members of the British Royal Family attend the event.

The evening’s performance is presented as a live variety show, usually from a theatre in London.

‘Warm glow’

It consists of family entertainment, including comedy, music, dance, magic and other specialty acts.

As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, Jimmy is unable to do live shows at venues.

However, he has been telling jokes via video on his social media accounts, including Facebook.

Additionally, he has been dipping into the archives and posted the images above and below on social media.

He added: “As lockdown continues to #SaveOurNHS I have been looking at nostalgic memorabilia from over the years.

“All have given me a warm glow. None more than this one.

“I performed alongside my fellow entertainers in front of the Queen Mum, Prince Charles and Princess Diana, at a time when Variety was King! ????”

Golden memories: The Osmonds

If you have any special memories of celebrities with whom Jimmy has performed or would simply like him to feature somebody in our series, you can:

As lockdown continues to #SaveOurNHS I have been looking at nostalgic memorabilia from over the years, all have given me a warm glow, none more than this one when I performed alongside my fellow entertainers in front of the Queen Mum, Prince Charles and Princess Diana, at a time when Variety was King!

Keith Harris: ‘Great showman – we salute you’ 150 150 mhamer

Keith Harris: ‘Great showman – we salute you’

Jimmy Cricket appeared on Keith Harris’s holiday laughter show (with Orville and Cuddles) at the Royal Opera House in the summer of 1982

Jimmy Cricket has been paying tribute in his latest newspaper column to ventriloquist Keith Harris, who died last month.

Keith, who, with his puppet duck Orville, became a regular feature of Saturday night TV in the 1980s, was 67.

He entertained generations of children with his sidekick Orville, a bright green duck who wore a nappy and spoke in a high-pitched voice but couldn’t fly. He also gave life to the popular puppet Cuddles the monkey, whose catchphrase was ‘I hate that duck!’

In addition to fronting The Keith Harris Show on BBC One, he (and Orville) gave private performances at birthday parties for Prince William and his brother Harry, at the request of Diana, Princess of Wales.

His 1982 single, Orville’s Song, was a top five hit, selling more than 400,000 copies.

In his May column for the Preston-based Lancashire Evening News, Jimmy says: “Most ventriloquists that are successful discover one dummy that tickles people’s funny bone, but Keith was blessed with two.

“In 1983, holidaymakers were still visiting our summer resorts en masse and Keith’s show was a sellout from start to finish.

“Keith Harris – you weren’t just a superb ventriloquist, you were a great showman and producer.

“We salute you.”