04 October 2018

Gromit Unleashed 2 raises a cracking grand total of £1.6m for Bristol Royal Hospital for Children

As our fantastic children's hospital charity, The Grand Appeal, recover from last night's exhilarating events at the Gromit Unleashed 2 auction, we have some exciting news to share with you! With all your kind support from contactless donations, our smash hit trail app, raffle, The Greatest Dog Show on Earth 2 exhibition as well as fundraising and private donations the amazing total now stands at an astonishing £1,621,500.00!

After a spectacular summer on the trail with our dear pals Wallace, Gromit and the mischievous penguin, Feathers McGraw, all 67 Gromit Unleashed 2 sculptures were auctioned off in a thrilling evening and fetched an unbelievable total of £1,321,500!

Sponsored by SLX, the auction was truly the grand finale to the summer of #GU2. Bids poured in from near and far, with around 600 attendees bidding in-person, while online bidders upped the ante. The night's standout stars were Wallambard and A Grand Tribute with BOTH going for a whopping winning bid of £55,000!

We owe an enormous thank you to the very special guests who helped to make it a night to remember and who help raised this life changing amount. Attendees were welcomed by beloved actress, writer, comedian and presenter Dawn French, who introduced renowned auctioneer, Richard Madley. As if that weren't exciting enough, were delighted to have as host to the evening's events Aardman Co-Founder and Creative Directive and long-time patron of the Grand Appeal, Peter Lord!

Congratulations to all of the winning bidders! Not only have they gotten their paws on some undeniably one-of-kind works of art, they have also made a huge difference to patients across the South West. Every penny raised at auction and throughout the Gromit Unleashed 2 trail will go toward helping the patients and families cared for Bristol Children's Hospital and the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at St Michael's Hospital.

UH Bristol would like to join The Grand Appeal in saying thank you to all those that helped bring this summer's success, Gromit Unleashed 2, to life! Everyone from our Trailblazer partners, sculptures sponsors and the tremendous artists that unleashed their creativity as well as our dedicated fundraisers and volunteers that have helped us along the trail. Last but not least - all of our incredible Gromiteers who took part in the trail and visited our smashing sculpture exhibition.

 

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