Jeremy turns auctioneer in bid to keep pool afloat
JEREMY Clarkson is hosting an auction to raise money for his local pool – with prizes including a tractor driving lesson from Diddly Squat star Kaleb Cooper.
The TV personality turned farmer will stage the sale at Chipping Norton Town Hall tomorrow.
Other top bidding items will include an electric Mini and even a game of tennis with Charlie Brooks – the husband of media executive Rebekah Brooks.
Bidders could also get the chance for a morning on the gallops with Charlie Longsdon Racing and £20 of sweets and chocolates a month for a year from a local sweet store in the Oxfordshire village.
Chipping Norton Lido trustee Claire Jarvis said: “It’s a long postponed night of fevered bidding and top-class entertainment to raise vital funds for the community-run pool.
“The audience is promised an unmissable event that will help the pool withstand the current energy crisis and remain open to the public.”
Run by local people as a charity since 2004 and reliant on fundraising, Clarkson once famously dropped his car in the pool for an early episode of Top Gear.
The TV personality, who lives nearby in Chadlington, has been a long-time supporter of the pool, praising it in a 2007 Sunday Times column.
Other prizes up for grabs include a gourmet tasting menu and wine for two at local restaurant Whistler’s, festival tickets, a week in Tenby and a new mountain bike.
The auction will be held at Chipping Norton Town Hall tomorrow. Doors open at 7pm. Tickets cost £20 which includes wine and nibbles.
Trustees added: “Please come and support your lido at this vital fundraising event.
“We are delighted that Jeremy Clarkson has agreed to be our auctioneer once again, and we have a brilliant range of lots this year.”