Blackpool Victoria Hospital among beneficiaries as Lytham Hall plays set new record

The seven performances of the six plays on offer this summer attracted record attendances and will mean a sizeable donation to the Hall fund, the amount of which is yet to be announced.

But the season also traditionally sees raffle tickets on offer at two selected plays and those sold this year yielded £1,250 - another record - to benefit good causes.

The money will be split between Blackpool Victoria NHS Trust, the St. Luke’s Leprosy Hospital in India, the visiting theatre company Illyria and the Lytham Hall Restoration Appeal.

The raffles took place at the performances of Much Ado About Nothing and HMS Pinafore, which attracted audiences totalling around 1,000, and prizes included tickets for the WonderHall music festival as well as vouchers and good from local businesses, after tea at the Hall and a large cuddly toy.

“Our Young Meet and Greet team did a wonderful job selling the tickets and handing out the prizes," said Julian.

"All four charities to benefit have each struggled severely in differing ways during the pandemic and it's a wonderful amount to raise.”

Ticket-seller Charlotte Mellors,17, who was on the Meet and Greet team throughout the season, said: “The patrons of the open air season and WonderHall promoters Cuffe and Taylor provided a superb range of prizes and it’s brilliant that we could raise so much money for charities in such a short time.

"I really enjoyed being part of the Meet and Greet team – it was hectic at times, but great fun.”

An announcement of the final numbers and figures for what was the 11th open air season, including the amount to be donated to the Hall from the ticket sales, is expected shortly.

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