Soap star’s surprise for charity crusader

Photo: PICTURE by DARREN ROBINSON.

PAUL Howarth, Dot Moon and Val Akroyd (back row, Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research representatives) join Tony Audenshaw, Gillian Edwards (Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research) and Jessica Howarth for the presentation.

Soap star Tony Audenshaw swopped ITV’s Emmerdale for Lydgate village to surprise school teacher Jessica Howarth.

She organised a winter ball to raise funds for the charity that helped her dad beat Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a type of cancer.

The 23-year-old, who works at St Thomas’s Leesfield Primary, raised £9,700 at the Snowflake Ball which was held at the White Hart in Lydgate earlier this month.

Dad Paul was diagnosed with the disease in February, 2010, but got the all-clear five months later.

And the family were so impressed with the dilligent work carried out by Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research they decided to do their bit to raise vital funds.

Hundreds of guests packed into the venue’s Oak Room to enjoy food, drink, raffles and auctions with many prizes donated by local business.

Tony, who plays fun-loving barman Bob Hope in the popular ITV1 Yorkshire village soap, has offered his support to the charity for the past 10 years and was only too happy to go along and collect the cheque.

As it turned out, he had already met Jessica.

The talented duo appeared in a production of Cinderella together at the Oldham Coliseum back in 1996.

He said: "It is a great charity to raise money for and since I got involved, several people I know have been affected by the disease.

“Fantastic advances have been made over the past 10 years and it is a pleasure to do my bit to help out."

Jessica is now planning to complete the Great Manchester Run in May in order to provide a fresh boost to the Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research kitty.

She said: "I was really pleased with how much the event raised.

“We were hoping for £4,000 so to more than double our target is fantastic.

“It was a lovely event and it felt like a celebration as my dad had been given the all clear by then so he was able to enjoy it with us."