Songs of Praise slot for Harrogate charity

It will be giving away 2,500 audio book CD’s of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol to school children in Yorkshire.

Clair Challenor-Chadwick, managing director of Cause UK is also a trustee of Dickens Gift to Yorkshire, a charity set up to promote Dickens educational and arts-led initiatives in the County.

Clair said: “Dickens was a regular visitor to Yorkshire and to towns like Harrogate.”

In 1858 Dickens famously said Harrogate was ‘the queerest place with the strangest people in it leading the oddest lives’.”

This year working with Selina Scott and local business people, Cause UK successfully negotiated for Songs of Praise to feature the project on their broadcast this Sunday, December 7.

Cause UK organised for film crews to spend the day in Malton visiting key locations linked to one of Dickens’ most well-loved books, A Christmas Carol.

Television presenter Selina Scott and Clair hope that Yorkshire can build on its links with Dickens.

Dickens was a regular visitor to Harrogate, Bolton Abbey and Malton where his best friend, Charles Smithson, lived.

Clair said the charity hopes to continue to celebrate the legacy of Dickens in Yorkshire.

Chef James Martin also took part in the filming.

Clair said: “We were very lucky to get James as he was serving 90 covers that evening and he kindly took time out from his busy kitchen to serve Smoking Bishop

(mulled wine), a Dickensian delicacy, and traditional gingerbread to the school children who took part in the filming.”

The ‘Dickens Gift to Yorkshire’ charity which manages the book and promotes educational and arts-led initiatives plans to give away 2,500 audio CD’s of the book to school children in Yorkshire.

More information about the project is available at www.causeuk.com

The charity’s project is on Songs of Praise this Sunday on BBC 2 at 6.20pm.