A sold-out concert in De Beauvoir has raised £6,000 for the Red Cross Ukraine Appeal, after musicians and artists came together to perform at St Peter’s Church on Saturday 5 March.
The event was pulled together in just four days, after Father Simon Cuff of the church contacted the De Beauvoir Association (DBA), in the hope of pulling creatives together quickly for a fundraiser.
The funds have been doubled, due to the event’s use of mobile payment company SumUp. Based in London, SumUp also has an office in Kyiv. The funds from the pop-up concert therefore total over £11,000.
Performances included songs from the Wing-it Singers, an acapella choir who sang traditional songs from Eastern Europe, as well as part of the Ukrainian Cathedral Choir.
Notable guests attended the concert
However, the star performance of the evening came from Hugh Harris, De Beauvoir resident and member of indie-pop band ‘The Kooks’. As a neighbour of one of the organisers, Kate McFarlane, DBA Chair, he was asked to contribute with a few songs, all performed on his acoustic guitar.
Harris spoke about the concert to the Hackney Post: “I agreed to the event immediately. I had been utterly appalled by what [Russian President] Vladimir Putin had just decided to do.”
De Beauvoir residents show solidarity
Residents of De Beauvoir have rallied in support of Ukraine since Russia’s invasion, with neighbourhood groups such as De Beauvoir Gardeners, the Benyon Estate and a number of residents all sharing the fundraiser and their support on social media.
“The event was incredible – so many extraordinary energies in the room. Beautiful voices all speaking and singing out together,” said Harris.
The occasion also championed another charity, promoted in the printed programme handed out to the audience, Hope and Aid, to see a £10,000 boost to their funds, according to the De Beauvoir Association.
“It was amazing,” said Kate McFarlane, one of the organisers, “I was sat next to [Father] Simon, and we looked at each other and shook our heads, we could not believe we had managed to pull it together in such a short space of time, and we are still pinching ourselves.”
A sold out event
Tickets for the event, which cost £15 per person, were sold out by Saturday lunchtime. Other residents hoping to attend the concert even had to be turned away at the door due to capacity limits.
It is not the first time Hugh Harris has used his musical talents to help raise funds for those in need. “I’d worked with the DBA food banks and the Trussel Trust before, raising funds to support people who are dependent on food banks by forming an isolation orchestra back in the first lockdown and donating the proceeds.”
“Hopefully these funds will be of use in the defence against a fragile dictator.”
Father Simon, a Reverend at St Peter’s Church and one of the organisers, wrote to De Beauvoir Association members when advertising the fundraiser: “We will hold an act of solidarity and remembrance with a two-minute silence and the Ukrainian national anthem at the start of the event.
This two-minute silence was described by Harris as “moving”. “It reminded me of how connected we all are as people,” he said.
An appearance from Strictly Come Dancing professional
The fundraiser also featured a surprise performance from Ukrainian professional dancer, Nikita Kuzmin, who appeared on ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ at the end of 2021, who was partnered up with TV presenter, Tilly Ramsay.
Originally from in Kyiv, and only in London for 24 hours, Kuzmin performed the impromptu dance for the 250 attendees as the final song played, The Beatles’ ‘All You Need is Love’.
One of the audience members filmed the concert and will be producing a video for De Beauvoir Association, which will be available to watch shortly. De Beauvoir Welcomes Refugees, another organisation led by the event’s planners, have also submitted an application to the Home Office to bring a displaced family to the area.
Donation details can be found on the DBA’s Twitter page: @debeauvoirassociation
Elsewhere, Clissold primary school has raised over £1100 for a Ukraine appeal
