A bedtime story by Royal appointment
Princess Anne joins celebs reading children’s classics to raise cash for Coronavirus appeal
SAVE the Children Patron Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal, has marked the end of the charity’s successful Save With Stories initiative by reading a tale about Thomas the Tank.
The video, shared on Save the Children UK’s Instagram page, is the final instalment of the fundraising project which has seen more than 70 wellknown faces read a selection of bedtime stories.
As well as keeping millions of families entertained during lockdown, the stories have helped raise £1.4m m for the charity’s Emergency Coronavirus Appeal to support families in the UK and around the world whose lives have been devastated by the pandemic. The Princess Royal became the Patron of Save the Children in 2017 after serving as President since 1970. She chose to read Thomas and Friends: The Royal Engine, which sees Thomas overcoming various obstacles to get ‘The Fat
Controller’ to collect an award from the Queen. She says it was a pleasure to read the book that ‘I enjoyed when I was young’.
The Princess Royal joins the Duchess of Sussex, who marked her son Archie’s first birthday with a reading of Duck! Rabbit!, and other famous faces including Helen Mirren, Kate Winslet, Rita Ora and Liam Payne.
The videos are still available on Save the Children UK’s Instagram and Facebook pages. To watch them – and to donate – visit savethechildren.org.uk/savewithstories
THERE are two new games in the CBeebies Playtime Island app based on two of its best-loved shows – Hey Duggee and Peter Rabbit. Hey Duggee: The Paddling Badge is a multiplayer game where little ones can choose their favourite member of The Squirrel Club and earn their paddling badge in a race against the other squirrels – and parents or siblings. Peter Rabbit Running Wild is a follow-up to Hop To It, and kids can choose from Peter, Lily or Benjamin and explore exciting areas like Mr McGregor’s Garden or Jeremy Fisher’s Lake. CBeebies Playtime Island is available for free from the Apple, Google Play and Amazon