Radio 4 launches 90th anniversary Christmas appeal Together For 90 Years with St Martin-in-the-Fields

This year’s Appeal is themed Together For 90 Years in recognition of the special partnership between BBC Radio 4 listeners, St Martin-in-the-Fields and frontline workers across the UK, who both help and work with homeless people every day. Last year the Appeal raised a total of £2.5 million. 

On Sunday 4 December the Christmas Appeal donation line will be answered by a host of volunteers and a few familiar Radio 4 voices, including Jenni Murray, Kathy Clugston, Susan Rae, Louiza Patikas (Helen Archer), Felicity Finch (Ruth Archer), Kirsty Lang, Francine Stock and Paul Lewis.

The history of the relationship between BBC Radio and St Martin-in-the-Fields dates back to Sunday 6 January 1924 and the first religious broadcast by the BBC live from the pulpit of St. Martin’s in Trafalgar Square, London at 6pm that evening. The BBC then asked that a twice-monthly service be broadcast from St Martin’s, which began in April 1924.

The Christmas Appeal was first mentioned in the December 1927 edition of the Radio Times, marking the beginning of the Christmas Appeal as it is known today. However, the origins of the Appeal can be traced back even further, to the end of the First World War and to the work of The Revd Hugh Richard Lawrie Sheppard (or ‘Dick Sheppard’, as he was affectionately known), the Vicar of St Martin’s from 1914 – 26. He began collecting funds for families and individuals who had fallen on hard times during the war. Although he was already making these regular calls on his congregation for donations, the first specific mention of the Christmas Appeal was on Sunday 5 December 1920 when, at the end of the service, he asked for contributions so that those less fortunate could have ‘treats and happiness at Christmas’. With the inception of religious broadcasting by the BBC, the Christmas Appeal began to be incorporated into the broadcast service by December 1925.

Gwyneth Williams, Controller BBC Radio 4 says: “The Christmas Appeal is very much part of Radio 4. Our relationship is longstanding and close and it is a real pleasure this year to mark the 90th anniversary together in a special broadcast. We continue to support the Appeal on air and St-Martin-in-the-Fields in their work for the homeless, more mindful than ever that kindness and compassion are kept at the heart of our civil society.”

The Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields, The Revd Dr Sam Wells, says: “I am proud that we are marking 90 years of the Christmas Appeal, which has an incredible record of achievement and is a partnership between a great variety of people who make that possible every year. In celebrating the anniversary we must also remember in all those years the problem of homelessness has not disappeared and it’s not going away, but by working together, I hope we are able to make a real difference.”

Money raised from the Appeal is shared between The Connection at St Martin’s and the Vicar’s Relief Fund (VRF). Based in central London, The Connection helps people leave behind life on the streets through street outreach teams, a day and night centre and specialist services. The VRF offers a lifeline by providing emergency grants to help people into housing or to keep their home if they are in danger of losing it, right across the UK.

BBC Radio 4 will broadcast the 90th Radio 4 Christmas Appeal made by the Revd Dr Sam Wells on Sunday 4 December at 7.55am and the Radio 4 Christmas Appeal: Making a Difference presented by Aasmah Mir on Sunday 4 December at 9.45am.

The Appeal will be open to donations from Sunday 4 December. Donations can be made by calling 0800 082 82 84 (calls are free from landlines or mobiles) or online: smitfc.org/donate/.

SW