Look To The Stars News: Judi Dench

Leona Lewis Says No To Animal Testing For Cosmetics

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 19:25:00 +0000

Singer Leona Lewis has sent a Valentine’s card and letter to John Dalli, European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Policy, with a personal plea for him to help end the suffering of animals used in cosmetics testing.

Leona’s card, sent in support of Humane Society International’s CrueltyFree2013 campaign, features a stunning photo of the ‘Hurt’ singer wearing an End Animal Testing body art message.

Annie Lennox To Celebrate Women's Day With Concert

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 15:30:00 +0000

To celebrate International Women’s Day, EQUALS and Southbank Centre’s WOW – Women of the World festival present a unique concert showcasing the power of British female recording artists.

Hosted and curated by Annie Lennox, who will be joined by Katy B, Jess Mills and Emeli Sandé on stage, EQUALS Live on 9th March will be a unique night of music that steps up the call for equality between men and women.

  "I’m proud to be presenting an evening of British female artists in celebration of International Women’s Day.," said Lennox. “EQUALS Live will shine a spotlight on an incredible new generation of women in music who are raising their voices in solidarity with women across the globe. International Women’s Day is the perfect time to reignite debate about what a more equal world would look like with a new generation and to finish the work of the women and men who paved the way before us.”

U2 And Sting Donate Items To Rainforest Foundation Charity Auction

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 16:00:00 +0000

Sting’s The Rainforest Foundation UK will again be hosting a brilliant online celebrity charity auction event called 12 Days of Christmas.

Auction lots are an array of very desirable gift items available to any online bidders wanting to score hot gift items for their friends and family while helping a good cause. 200 fabulous guilt-free gifts have been generously donated by celebrities, luxury labels and a variety of big, eco and independent brands all of whom want to help raise money to protect the world’s rainforests.

Sting's Rainforest Foundation Announces Christmas Celebrity Charity Auction

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 15:30:00 +0000

After the amazing success of last year’s event, The Rainforest Foundation UK will again be hosting a brilliant online gift auction event called 12 Days of Christmas.

Auction lots include an array of very desirable gift items available to any online bidders wanting to score hot gift items for their friends and family while helping a good cause. 200 fabulous guilt-free gifts have been generously donated by celebrities, luxury labels and a variety of big, eco and independent brands all of whom want to help raise money to protect the world’s rainforests.

Auction lots include signed items from Sting, U2, Stephen Fry, Dame Judi Dench and Emma Thompson, red carpet dresses from John Galliano, new season clothing, shoes and accessories direct from 2011 London and Paris Fashion Weeks, an Addict/Endeaver snowboard, amazing designer bags from the likes of Valentino (donated by STYLEBOP.com) and Coach, homewares from Squint, Fat Boy and Furniture Magpies, signed art from Rob Ryan and Paul Insect, sports gear from Rapha, O’Neill and North Face, baking lessons and baked goods from Primrose Bakery, You Make A Cake & Cake Pop Princess, plus VIP gig & show tickets from Zane Lowe, The National Ballet, Soundcrash and The Warehouse Project, and ethical gifts, music packs, Michelin-starred dinners, hampers, luxury hotel stays, pamper days and even a place in a top football school for the little ones!

Roger Moore And Brigitte Bardot Say No To Cruel Cosmetics

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 13:00:00 +0000

Hollywood legends Sir Roger Moore, Brigitte Bardot and Virginia McKenna, OBE, are speaking out in support of a ban on selling animal-tested cosmetics in Europe.

They join stars Ricky Gervais, Ke$ha, Leona Lewis, Melanie C, Dame Judi Dench and Mary McCartney in signing Humane Society International’s “CrueltyFree2013” petition.

Judi Dench Provides Aid To Somalian Refugees

Tue, 23 Aug 2011 13:00:00 +0000

Actor Judi Dench is the latest celebrity that ShelterBox’s brand of aid has impressed. ShelterBox provides, literally, shelter boxes to victims of disaster. The current target is East African refugees who are fleeing into Kenya from the drought in Somalia.

ShelterBox ships their 110-pound plastic boxes containing the equipment most urgently needed for the vulnerable refugees. A sturdy, weather proof, family-sized tent with internal divisions, thermal blankets and insulated ground sheets, mosquito nets, water purification equipment, a tool kit including axe, saw, shovel and wire cutters, a wood or multi-fuel burning stove, cooking and eating utensils, and even a children’s pack of books and crayons are all possibilities to fill these boxes according to the disaster at hand, as well as the lightweight, waterproof boxes themselves that can be utilized as food storage containers.

“This is a very effective and immediate way of helping those in extreme distress,” said Dench according to a report in the This Is The West Country paper.

Sting's Rainforest Foundation UK To Launch Celebrity Charity Christmas Auction

Fri, 29 Jul 2011 14:00:00 +0000

After the amazing success of last year’s event, the Rainforest Foundation UK will again be hosting an amazing online celebrity charity auction event called 12 Days of Christmas.

Auction lots, which will include an array of very desirable gift items available to online bidders wanting to score hot gift items for their friends and family while helping a good cause, have been generously donated by celebrities, luxury labels and big name brands who want to help raise money to protect the world’s rainforests.

Last year close to 150 fabulous guilt-free gifts were up for grabs, including plenty of ‘money can’t buy’ items like lunch at Sting & Trudie Styler’s country estate, signed items from Dame Judi Dench, Ian McKellen and Kylie Minogue, limited edition clothing, accessories and luxury items from Vivienne Westwood, Giles Deacon, Jaeger, Jenny Packham, Bvlgari, Erdem and Aspinal of London, plus VIP gig tickets, music packs, haircuts, hampers and even a life size toy gorilla!

Queen's Brian May Named As Charity Patron

Wed, 27 Jul 2011 15:00:00 +0000

Renowned musician and astrophysicist Brian May CBE, has been named as a Patron of the Dr Hadwen Trust (DHT), the UK’s leading non-animal medical research charity.

Brian is a keen advocate of both scientific progress and animal welfare and welcomed the opportunity to join the charity’s existing high profile patrons, Dame Judi Dench, Joanna Lumley OBE and David Shepherd CBE.

Mary McCartney And Judi Dench Want Animal-Tested Cosmetics Banned

Wed, 25 May 2011 15:30:00 +0000

Mary McCartney – daughter of Sir Paul – and Dame Judi Dench are the latest stars to sign the Cruelty-Free 2013 petition calling on European Union politicians to honour their pledge to ban the sale of animal-tested cosmetics.

The petition by Humane Society International/Europe has also been signed by Leona Lewis, Ricky Gervais and ‘Sporty Spice’ Melanie C, as well as nearly 50,000 compassionate consumers.

James Bond Joins Annie Lennox For International Women's Day

Mon, 07 Mar 2011 18:45:00 +0000

James Bond star Daniel Craig appears in drag for a special video produced for a partnership of leading charities brought together by Annie Lennox.

The two-minute short, specially commissioned for International Women’s Day, sees the 007 star undergo a dramatic makeover as he puts himself, quite literally, in a woman’s shoes.

Directed by acclaimed ‘Nowhere Boy’ director/conceptual artist Sam Taylor-Wood, scripted by Jane Goldman (‘Kick Ass’) and featuring the voice of Dame Judi Dench reprising her role as ‘M’, the film will be screened in cinemas and streamed online in a bid to highlight the levels of inequality that persist between men and women in the UK and worldwide. It is the first film featuring Bond to be directed by a woman.

Celebrity-Backed Charity Gets New Website

Mon, 14 Feb 2011 14:00:00 +0000

Action for Children has gone local with the launch of my.actionforchildren.org.uk. The site enables the public to help disadvantaged children within their local community, by allowing them to identify and support small individual charity projects within their local area.

The new campaign has huge support from global celebrities such as Jessica Hynes, Dakota Blue Richards, Frank Lampard, Annie Lennox, Vanilla Ice and Dame Judi Dench.

The new website, the first of its kind for a UK children’s charity, is launched in conjunction with the publication of a poll of 2,000 people commissioned by the UK charity.

Lennox, Fiennes and Dench Strive to Save the UK's Forests

Tue, 25 Jan 2011 13:30:00 +0000

The Sunday Telegraph has published a letter signed by nearly 100 dignitaries speaking out against the announcement to sell off 15 percent of the government’s forests.

Save England’s Forests, a new campaign group, has gained the support of signatories Annie Lennox, Dame Judi Dench, Sir Ranulph Fiennes and Bill Bryson.

Bryson, who sits as president of the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), recently supported the CPRE’s Gloucestershire branch in questioning proposal’s to sell land in the Forest of Dean. They are calling for the forest to be protected as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Judi Dench Joins Celebrity Vice Presidents Of Charity

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 14:00:00 +0000

Fauna & Flora International (FFI) is pleased to announce that Dame Judi Dench has been elected as its new Vice President.

The role of Vice President is honorary in nature and runs in renewable terms of five years. Vice Presidents are chosen from among people of distinction in conservation or public life more generally and who wish to assist FFI in achieving its conservation goals. The organization’s mission is to “act to conserve threatened species and ecosystems worldwide, choosing solutions that are sustainable, based on sound science and take into account human needs”.

Other Vice Presidents of FFI include Sir David Attenborough, Stephen Fry, Dr Charlotte Uhlenbroek, and The Lord Browne of Madingley.

Yoko Ono Donates Glasses To Celebrity Charity Auction

Wed, 06 Oct 2010 15:35:00 +0000

Yoko Ono is just one of a number of A list stars who have donated something from their personal wardrobe to raise funds for Alder Hey Imagine Appeal.

The diminutive star has chosen a pair of her own iconic Porsche Carrera sunglasses and signed them for the charity’s unique Clothes Throw event, which starts with a special online auction this Sunday 3rd October for seven days. An auction item of this stature rarely comes along and organisers are delighted that Yoko Ono, who is Honorary Patron of the charity, has donated these signed sunglasses, like the ones she wore on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine in the 1980s.

“I am delighted to be able to support this important fundraising initiative by donating a pair of my favorite sunglasses- the ones that John loved to see me wear,” said Yoko. “As Honorary Patron of Alder Hey Imagine Appeal, I know how much the funds are needed to support the pioneering work of this wonderful hospital.”

Claire Danes Gives Her Thumb Print To Charity

Thu, 23 Sep 2010 11:30:00 +0000

Emmy award-winning actress Claire Danes joined millions of people who’ve added their thumbprints to a unique petition at Grand Central Terminal this week, led by global humanitarian organization Save the Children.

The thumbprint mosaic was designed by New York-based artist Ian Wright and represents the support of three million people from 40 countries who have taken part in Save the Children’s EVERY ONE campaign. The campaign aims to put pressure on world leaders meeting at the United Nations in New York, to do more to stop children dying needlessly of preventable and treatable causes.

X Factor Favorites Donate Clothes To Charity Auction

Thu, 19 Aug 2010 14:00:00 +0000

X Factor favourites Alexandra Burke, Jedward, Olly Murs, Stacy Solomon and super stylish judge Dannii Minogue have given clothes to a charity auction which will benefit Alder Hey Imagine Appeal.

The X Factor outfits will be auctioned at the Clothes Throw event at The Racquet Club, Liverpool, this October. The Clothes Throw will be hosted by British designers Kirsty Doyle and Benna Harry who will give style talks on each of the items whilst they are modelled on the catwalk for guests to bid on.

X Factor winner Alexandra Burke has given a black Ed Hardy by Christian Audigier dress and judge Dannii Minogue has given a multi-coloured Orion dress which she wore on Gok’s Fashion Fix. This years X Factor is due to start on Saturday and last year’s X Factor finalists have all signed an Imagine Appeal t-shirt for the auction.

Judi Dench Donates James Bond Clothes To Charity

Tue, 20 Jul 2010 13:00:00 +0000

Dame Judi Dench and Dame Shirley Bassey are the latest A-Listers to donate to Alder Hey Imagine Appeal’s Clothes Throw event being held in The Racquet Club in Liverpool in October.

Dame Judi Dench has donated the actual suit that she wore as character M when she starred alongside Daniel Craig in the James Bond film Casino Royale – the grey Armani suit actually comes on the hanger used on set.

Children Of Peace To Benefit From Charity Comedy Night

Fri, 02 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0000

After the sell-out success of last year’s Stand-up for Peace, Children of Peace’s renowned comedy night is back with a fantastic line-up, in aid of an inspirational cause. The money raised will go towards projects that specifically bring Israeli and Palestinian children together in the hope that they will develop long lasting friendships.

Children of Peace – the UK based multi-faith and non partisan charity– aims to build friendship, reconciliation and trust between Israeli and Palestinian children and youth, aged 4-17, through shared arts, education, health and sports programs, regardless of faith, gender or heritage.

Judi Dench Leads Christmas Card Recycling Initiative

Mon, 04 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0000

British actress Judi Dench is leading a recycling initiative with a difference across the UK this month.

The Oscar-winning star – along with the Woodland Trust – is asking people to recycle their Christmas cards to fund the planting of trees in woodland areas of Britain.

“We all enjoy giving and receiving Christmas cards, well thanks to the Woodland Trust there is the chance for a second giving and receiving opportunity this year,” said Dench. “I would like to challenge people to give to the environment, recycle their cards and then receive trees for their environment by going to www.woodlandtrust.org/cards and choosing where the new trees generated by this year’s recycling should be planted!”

Judi Dench Supports Children Of Peace

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 14:00:00 +0000

Actress Dame Judi Dench is calling on support for the Children of Peace winter appeal.

The 2009-10 Children of Peace Winter Appeal – Schools Aid – aims to raise funds for ten affiliate schools in Israel and Palestine who struggle to find the funding for teachers, care workers, health provision and basic resources like pens, books and software.

Yoko Ono Donates iPod To Charity Auction On John Lennon's Birthday

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0000

Yoko Ono has given her support to a small Liverpool charity that is planning a fundraising initiative at a Beatles landmark to celebrate John Lennon’s birthday on Friday.

The Henshaws Society for Blind People will hold a concert at The Cavern Club on October 9 – World Sight Day and Lennon’s birthday – which will feature a number of local bands and a special auction. Going under the hammer will be a John Lennon-engraved 16GB ipod touch and a personally signed postcard donated by Ono, as well as football shirts, artwork and more.

“The Cavern gig last year was such a huge success but this year it’s bigger and better,” said Henshaws fundraiser Nikki Andrews. “We’re so glad that Yoko Ono has given her support on such a significant day.”

Derek Jacobi Joins Madonna as Charity Patron

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 15:30:00 +0000

Sir Derek Jacobi has just signed on as the latest Patron of Children of Peace, joining existing Patron Madonna, and a long list of famous names, in supporting the charity’s work.

Children of Peace works to protect children from the violence in Israel and Palestine, while establishing projects and programs in the arts, education, health and sports for Israeli and Palestinian children, aged 4-17.

The charity has so far garnered the support of stars such as Dame Judi Dench, Dame Helen Mirren, Jeff Goldblum, Patrick Stewart and Emma Thompson.

Stars Sign Mini For British Forces Morale

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:30:00 +0000

A car signed by some of Britain’s favorite stars will go up for auction at Bonhams Auction House tonight, July 3, to raise money for the British Forces Foundation’s Lap of Honour charity, which aims to boost morale in Britiain’s Armed Forces.

For the last year, the Mini cooper – adorned with a Union Jack on the roof – has been traveling around Britain, gathering autographs from well-known faces such as Michael Caine, Richard Branson, Sienna Miller, Simon Cowell, Terry Wogan, Joan Collins, Roger Moore, Michael Parkinson, Cliff Richard, Ranulph Fiennes, Tom Jones, Hugh Grant, Judi Dench, James Blunt, Katherine Jenkins, Jackie Stewart, Rod Stewart, Lewis Hamilton, Kate Moss, Joe Calzaghe, Elton John, David Beckham, Magaret Thatcher, Eric Clapton, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, Joanna Lumley, Helen Mirren, Gordon Brown, Paul McCartney and many more.

“This fantastic car has been on an amazing journey during our tenth anniversary year,” said Mark Cann, director of the BFF. “It will be a unique addition to any car collection and we’re delighted that Bonhams offered so generously to help us achieve the best bid and raise as much money as we can. The very act of demonstrating support will send a clear message of solidarity to those on the frontline, which will in itself be a significant boost to their morale.”

Eric Clapton Signs Guitar For Leukaemia Children

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 12:30:00 +0000

A guitar signed by Eric Clapton was just one of the items that were featured in a charity auction held in the UK last weekend that raised over £6,000 (US$8,500) for Children With Leukaemia.

The guitar – which was also signed by Mike Rutherford from Genesis and Procol Harum singer Gary Brooker – went under the hammer for £500 at the event, held in Norwich. Also up for auction was a guitar signed by Green Day, which sold for £840, and a Clapton-signed DVD of a Cream reunion at the Albert Hall that sold for £200.

Children With Leukaemia is the UK’s leading charity dedicated exclusively to fighting Britain’s biggest childhood cancer. For more than 20 years, they have been helping children affected by leukaemia. They fund research into causes and treatments, support families through welfare programmes and campaign on their behalf. Their current fundraising campaign is being fronted by British celebrity Chris Tarrant, and the charity also enjoys support from Jonathan Ross, Judi Dench, Phil Collins, Joanna Lumley, Paul McCartney and many more.

Stars Heal Patients With A Kiss

Wed, 11 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0000

Medicinema is a registered charity that has partnered with the Health Sector and the Film Industry, installing state-of-the-art cinemas on site in hospitals around the United Kingdom.

By creating purpose built cinemas in hospitals, Medicinema provides a much needed escape for the patients – it’s a welcome break from the hospital ward. Each cinema is specially designed to cater for beds and wheel chairs and nursing staff on duty throughout every Medicinema screening.

With nurses instead of usherettes, Medicinema harnesses the magic of the Silver Screen to help enrich the quality of life for patients. By screening the latest releases for patients young and old – including those in beds and on wheelchairs – patients and their families are able to escape the reality of hospital life.