Community / BBC Children in Need is back!

BBC Radio Shetland is ready to host its annual Children in Need fundraising appeal on Friday night. Almost 80 items have been donated for the popular auction.

Ian Smith with a model of a 1970s Bedford bus.

Ian Smith with a model of a 1970s Bedford bus.

Ian Smith of Troswick started making model wooden buses for the appeal back in 1985 when he worked as a lighthouse keeper. This year he has made a 1970s Bedford Bus.

Tommy Isbister of Burland Croft has restored a fiddle. The auction list also includes knitwear and jewellery to trips on boats, a scenic flights around Shetland, and a hand-built stone croft house made by Frank Manson from North Roe.

Last year Shetland raised more than £20,000 for Children in Need. The good news is more than twice that amount is coming back to the isles this year to support charities like Ability Shetland.

The group has been awarded £120,000 over the next three years to fund clubs and activities for children and young people with disabilities across Shetland.

Team leader Stephanie Bain said: “This funding gives us and the families who require our support, security over the next three years. The team was pleased to secure funding as it’s becoming more a challenge for the third sector to secure and comes at a time when more disabled people are requiring more support with accessing social opportunities that are inclusive and within their own communities.

James Tulloch and Bobby Jennings

James Tulloch and Bobby Jennings

“We are very grateful to BBC Children in Need for the maximum grant amount that will make such a difference to disabled children and their families across Shetland.”

The attached photo is of James Tulloch and Bobby Jennings enjoying activities during the October holidays.

Since the appeal started in the 1980s more than £1 million has been raised across the isles. A new grant programme is also starting this year helping children living in rural and island communities like Shetland.

It is called the Big Sky Programme and provides smaller grants to support the emotional wellbeing of 8-13 year olds at an early stage, before mental health problems develop.

It has been a busy week already for Pudsey. On Tuesday morning he dropped along the Book Bug session at the Shetland Library for a story and to meet some of the bairns.

The Pudsey Shop is still open at the library to buy merchandise in aid of Children in Need.

Music line-up

The programme starts at 6pm when the pupils of Cunningsburgh Primary School take over the airwaves to present Give us a Tune.

Then between 7pm and 1am there is a great variety of music lined up for listeners. Shetland’s Young Fiddler of the Year Evie Williamson is along with Kirsten Hendry. Pupils from the Anderson High School group Fiddle Attraction are dropping by the studio along with Langstrings for lots of tunes.

Pudsey at the library earlier this week.

Pudsey at the library earlier this week.

A busy schedule of local acts through the night also includes Odesa, Kansa, Da Fustra and Magic Money Tree Band, with Alan Small and Guests taking things through the midnight hour to the end of the programme at 1am.

Radio Shetland editor John Johnston said: “We are always astonished by how generous people and local businesses are towards the appeal. It is so humbling, especially at this difficult time for everyone.

“A big part of the six-hour live programme is also about having fun. We will be playing plenty of tunes to keep listeners’ toes tapping with lightsome chat too between songs and regular updates on the fundraising efforts in the charity auction. We want folk to listen at home and enjoy it as well as put a peerie bid in too.”

Auction prizes have been split between three time slots: an early auction running from 7pm until 9pm, the STAR auction from 9pm until 12.30am and the late auction running from 9.30pm until midnight.

Early auction, 7pm – 9pm:

1. The chance to present Give us a Tune on BBC Radio Shetland
2. A Scottish Parliament goodie bag
3. A pair of knitted dags (fingerless gloves) made by Barbara Cheyne
4. A cantilever fishing box ,with a varied selection of sea fishing tackle and weights, from LHD
5. Twelve escallonia plants in poly pots, and  12 flowering current plants in poly pots, from Jean Keith
6. A gift voucher for 5kgs of haddock,  donated by Blydoit Fish
7. A Christmas tree, donated by COPE
8. A wool tartan bag, donated by Jamieson’s Wool
9. A Shetland Rugby shirt
10. A print from Gordon Siegel
11. New Leonard Brown CD  from High Level Music
12. Five kilo bag of mussels from Blueshell Mussels
13. A hamper from Scoop
14. A Smirk original framed water colour of a croft house, by Stephen Gordon
15. A  knitted scarf by Hazel Sinclair
16.  A hamper from the Bigton Shop
17. Harry Potter wand, made by Vic Thomas
18. £25 voucher for any beauty treatment at Boujee in Lerwick
19. A handmade wooden Christmas tree sculpture, made by Gibby Pottinger of Wid Wark
20. Ram knitwear headband, made by Roisin McAtamney
21. . Knitted gloves, made by Lillian Mikolajczak
22. A Children in Need Iced Sponge Cake made by Wendy Best
23. £100 worth of vouchers for the SPAR shop in Sandwick
24. A cosy handmade blanket made by Cath Simpson
25. An Indian head massage donated by Hjemli Reflexology

Star auction, 9pm – 12.30am:

1. NorthLink –  Return trip to Aberdeen or Kirkwall  for two passengers: includes a standard cabin
2. EnQuest – Dinner, bed and breakfast for two at Busta House Hotel
3. Burra Bear – Peerie Bjorn o’ Pitt Lane
4. Accordion and Fiddle Festival package  – two memberships, including two tickets for Thursday and Friday venues, two for the Grand Dance and two for the Sunday concert
5. Trip on the Dim Riv around Lerwick Harbour for up to 12 passengers
6. Four tickets for Islesburgh Drama Group ‘s Christmas panto – Ali Baba an’ Twartree Thieves
7. 1970s wooden Bedford bus
8. Lerwick Port Authority – parking for a year on Victoria Pier
9. Trip on Lerwick Port Authority’s pilot boat, Knab, for a group of up to eight people
10. A voucher for up to £200 worth of tyres from Brae Garage
11. A £100 box of haddocks from the LHD
12. Inter-island flight voucher for either a scenic trip for two adults, or a return trip to Foula or Fair Isle from Airtask
13. A restored fiddle by Tommy Isbister
14. A large, wooden model ferry made by Peter Thompson
15. Shetland Jewellery – A four-hour jewellery-making workshop for one person, to make stacking rings
16. Ooie Art – Needle-felted mirrie dancers scene made by Peerie Oorick
17. Cecil Duncan  – A framed acrylic canvas painting of the Lerwick Lifeboat
18. A woodcut print  by Paul Bloomer
19. Hand-made, hand-forged ram’s head fire poker by Bryden Jacobson
20. Hand built stone croft house made by Frank Manson
21. TotalEnergies – one year individual ‘More4Life’ membership with Shetland Recreational Trust, along with an Shetland Gas Plant goodie bag, worth over £300
22. Flights for two people on Loganair’s  network
23. Tommy the Cat experience – a free Tommy calendar, a meet and greet at Tommy’s house, and the chance to pick his next bandana
24. Folk Festival package.  Two memberships, two concert tickets of their choice and two foy tickets of their choice. There’s also a chance to purchase additional tickets for the above concerts before they go on public sale
25. Trip on the Swan – One day sail around Shetland next summer for one person
26. Jarl squad tie and pin badge from ex-Jarl Stanley Manson,  who was Naddod of Faroe in 2004
27. A print by Avril Thomson Smith
28. One night’s stay at North Bode Apartments in Lerwick
29. A day out with the mobile library van
30. A hand-knitted shawl,  made by Kath Simpson
31. Mousa Boat trip for a family of four
32. A voucher for two adults from Seabirds and Seals for a boat tour around Bressay and Noss

Late auction, 9.30pm – midnight:

1. A House of Commons goody bag
2. A fish box full of mauve primroses from Jean Keith
3. A large cuddly toy Pudsey bear
4. One walking stick any size made by Vic Thomas
5. A bag of Ness totties donated by Da Flea
6. Large knitted doll made by Marion Gill from Unst
7. The Outpost Experience – A chance to hand feed the animals, have a run with the emus, and maybe take home an emu egg if they have laid. Home brus available if the winner so desires
8. A gift voucher for 5kgs of smoked haddock donated by Blydoit fish
9. A Christmas Tree donated by the Brae Building Centre
10. A voucher for a meal at Da Haaf Restaurant in Scalloway
11. A bottle of Shetland Reel
12. A 24 x 16 inch wall mounted print of a photo of your choice from Art Machine
13. A full set of four alloy wheel refurbishment at the Malakoff Shetland Powder Coatings
14. Five kilo bag of mussels from Blueshell Mussels
15. A three hour house clean from Susie Shine
16. A new calendar and year book from the Shetland Fisherman’s Association
17. A voucher for two adult memberships from the Asta Golf Club for the 2024 season
18. A £25 voucher from Aa Fired Up
19. A £100 fuel voucher from Bolts Car Hire
20. A pendant of a ewe donated by Yala Jewellery
21. A voucher for 1x 3-4kg of salmon donated by Cooke Aquaculture
22. A silk scarf and pot from Vidlin Pottery
23. A knitted toorie made by  Maragret Tulloch
24. A knitted headband from Lillian Mikolajczak
25. A hamper from Health Craft
26. A knitted tie made by Ram donated by John Fraser
27. Haar Sauna – one hour sauna session for up to six people
28. £50 voucher to the Maryfield House Hotel
29. A £100 voucher for No88 Restaurant donated by Scottish Sea Farms