Our 95th year anniversary celebrations got off to an amazing start on Sunday 29th January as we held what was our 49th Mad Hatter’s Tea Party at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House. Firefighters from Soho Station of the London Fire Brigade parked up their appliance on Mayfair’s Park Lane, and along with London’s Pearly Kings, Queens, Princes and Princesses, and a large group of costume characters they greeted the children as they arrived at the venue, creating quite a spectacle. We would like to thank the Pearly King & Prince of Finsbury, John & Darren Walters for their donation which is very much appreciated.
Once the children had entered the Great Room, they were given Glowsticks donated by Global Marketing Group Ltd and taken to their tables where they were treated to drinks, sandwiches, crisps, cake, and jelly. The Baker Street Station branch of Wenzel’s the Bakers produced some fabulous rolls enough for the several hundred adult entertainers, parents, carers, and volunteers in attendance.
DJ Lee Raw did a grand job running the afternoon’s program of entertainment, keeping everything on schedule, and playing some great dance music, he also sprayed some fun foam from the stage over the children, which they absolutely loved.
Our Honorary Secretary Malcolm Shaffron delivered his Health & Safety speech, advising the location of the fire exits and our Location Medical Services First Aid post.
We were very lucky to have a whole team of face painters, clowns, and even a Candy Floss machine too this year, and the wonderful cadets from Redbridge, Barking, Dagenham and Westminster were instrumental in keeping these areas in good order and directing the children around.
The Crystals from Crystal Palace kicked off the entertainment with a fabulous cheerleading routine followed by a joint musical medley from Elvis Shmelvis and Ray “Elton” Johnson where the children danced and sang along to their well-known songs.
The dancefloor was then cleared to welcome Dance 21 who gave a brilliant dance performance, it was so lovely to see children entertaining children. The next treat for the children was a performance by Elsa & Anna, singing songs from Frozen, which mesmerised the children as they looked and sounded so true to their characters.
The children then gathered around the stage to watch Zaz the Clown perform his circus routine, juggling and even riding a unicycle around the stage with handlebars that were not even attached – this was incredibly funny to watch.
Our wonderful costume characters along with the Crystals, and Pearlies started a parade around the dancefloor and the children were then invited to join in and dance with their favourite characters.
Donchez Dacres from Britain’s Got Talent then took to the stage to sing to the children which he does with such energy and he really had the whole room rocking, he gave a fantastic performance to bring the festivities to a close.
As they left the party, all the children were given a party bag filled with toys and goodies to take home.
There are so many people and organisations to thank for helping us to put on such a spectacular event, and we cannot put on this event without your support, so we would like to give a huge thank you to:
- The incredible costumed characters: the Furry Tail Folk, Rainbow Productions (Pinocchio), the QPR FC mascots, the UK Garrison (including Batman, Deadpool, Dredd, Ghostbusters, the Star Wars characters and crew), Willow Wishes Celebrations (Elsa & Anna), Paul Hazell (Batman)
- London’s Pearly Kings, Queens, Princes & Princesses
- Zaz the Clown & Mattie the Clown
- The Crystals (Crystal Palace Cheerleaders)
- Donchez Dacres
- Dance 21
- Elvis Shmelvis & Ray “Elton” Johnson
- Gemma Blackie and her team of Face Painters & Candy Floss makers
- Global Marketing Group Ltd for the Glow Sticks
- Location Medical Services for their First Aid support
- DJ Lee Raw and Mark Cohen and his team for supplying the disco and the stage set up
- It’s All Glow
- Amanda Miller and the Police Officers and Cadets from Redbridge, Barking & Dagenham, and Westminster
- London Fire Brigade (Soho station)
- Photographers: Leah Van Zyl, Dean Euesden & Ken Cameron
- Highgate Balloons for the balloon bubble decoration
- EARS Plc for the radios
- Ultimate Promotions
- Wenzel’s Baker Street Station branch for the buffet catering
- Donna Turner from ASDA Park Royal for the chocolate for the party bags
- The Management & staff of the JW Marriott Grosvenor House
And last but not least the volunteer drivers, helpers, and sponsors – too many to name individually but we sincerely thank each and every one of you.
To make a donation to the London Taxi Drivers’ Charity for Children, text TAXI £5, £10 or £20 to 70085