Sniffing out new ways to help people in need
WHILE most people collect stamps or coins, Andy Green is obsessed with buying Red Noses.
He now owns what is thought to be the biggest personal collection of the charity items in Britain.
Andy, 27, started snapping up Red Noses when he was just two years old – and in the past 25 years, he has accumulated 70 and spent £250 buying missing ones on ebay.
His precious collection is stored in a special stand he created himself using a 3D printer.
Last year, Andy raised more than £1,600 for Comic Relief by posting a selfie every day for 60 days wearing a different Red Nose.
He has even created hilarious characters for each of the noses, including Tommy who “loves to laugh, joke and play cheeky tricks on all the other noses” and Daisy, who “loves to dance and daydream about starring in the Royal Nose Ballet one day!”
Andy has also shaved his head, beard and eyebrows and waxed his chest and armpits to raise money for charity.
He said: “There may be other people who haven’t gone public to say they own every single Red Nose, but I think as far as I know, I have the biggest collection in the country.
“As a kid I didn’t always take good care of the noses so now
I am really proud of my collection and make sure they’re stored properly.”
It wasn’t until 2013 that Andy, from Putney, South West London, started to gather the Red Noses he’d collected as a child together and source missing ones online.
His collection now boasts everything from the very first Red
Nose in 1988 to a rare 2019 Green
Nose, which he bought as part of a 12-pack bundle.
Andy’s personal favourite, however, is the 2005 nose because of its multi-coloured elastic hair.
He said: “It was always my favourite one when I was a kid so I was really chuffed when I managed to find it on ebay and
I’ve now got about six of
them.” This year Andy, who works as a Service Desk Analyst for Nando’s, is planning to host a raffle and a quiz at work to raise more money for Comic Relief.
He will also star in a new comedy sketch alongside Sir Lenny Henry and Dame Joanna Lumley and has featured in Comic Relief’s promotional posters, which he describes as “incredibly exciting”.
Andy is motivated by the power of laughter and said: “If you can get people laughing, I think it makes people have a better day.
“I like to think I put others first, and this is another way of giving back.
“I would have been really chuffed to raise £100 last year, so it’s amazing to have raised as much as I did.”
Andy is keen to broaden his Red Nose collection and regularly hunts them down on ebay.
Last month, he bought a full display box of 2022’s Red Noses just to ensure he had the full set.
He said: “Anything I can do to help raise money and awareness for Comic
Relief is important”