Top Scots actor Gerard Butler backs Big Girly Quiz for CHAS!

Top Scots actor Gerard Butler is urging ladies across Scotland to take part in the ultimate girls’ night in to help raise vital funds for Children’s Hospices Across Scotland (better known as CHAS).

The Big Girly Quiz, to be streamed live on Facebook on Friday 5th June, has been organised in place of four CHAS ladies lunches and the charity’s annual Rocking Horse Ball, which have all had to be cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Gerard will join a host of other famous faces participating in the event which will be jointly hosted by Britain’s Got Talent star Edward Reid and Scottish comedian, Fred MacAulay.

Originally from Paisley, Gerard, is known across the world for his starring roles in box office blockbusters such as 300, Law Abiding Citizen and the Fallen Franchise. He is also popular for his rom-com roles in hit films like PS I Love You and The Bounty Hunter.

The 50-year-old actor, who now resides in California, has committed to asking a question at the Big Girly Quiz, which he describes in a special video recording as a ‘fabulous fundraising event’.

He said: “I know it’s hard for everybody just now but especially for charities who rely on donations. CHAS is a beautiful organisation that provides palliative care, family respite and support throughout Scotland and right now these families are needing your help more than ever.

“So get a group of your friends together, virtually of course, and join me and other surprise guests on June 5. Together we can really get through this.”

Like many other charities in the current pandemic, CHAS has had to dramatically transform the way in which it operates. While both Rachel House in Kinross and Robin House in Balloch are continuing to provide end of life care, the charity has also set up the UK’s first ever virtual children’s hospice to support families who are having to completely self-isolate.

Now in its second month, the virtual hospice offers extensive support to families by phone and video on clinical guidance, financial advice and bereavement support. CHAS family support teams also offer a range of interactive activities, art clubs, storytelling and friendship calls to children and parents.

Topics included in the Big Girly Quiz include music, chick-flicks, showbiz and sport. There will also be lots of laughs, singing and dancing on the night as well as a raffle with top prizes to be won.

CHAS High Profile Events Manager, Diane Alton paid tribute to Gerard for and everyone involved in the event.

She said: “We are so grateful to Gerard for his support for our first ever Big Girly Quiz which will be hosted by the amazing Edward Reid and Fred MacAulay who have kindly offered their time for free. I would also like to personally thank yourGB events for their expertise in helping us run this event.

“We’re thankful to have received some incredibly generous donations for our raffle from existing CHAS supporters including Pickering’s Gin, Boozy Events, Amazon, Kinghorn Bodyshop, Brewin Dolphin, Tunnocks and Ava Innes. I would also like to recognise Thorntons Solicitors, who were our headline sponsors for this year’s Rocking Horse Ball which was due to take place on the same day as the quiz.

“Finally, thanks must also go to the fantastic Edinburgh band, BLEEKER, who are long-time friends of CHAS and are contributing to the music round. All their events have been cancelled this year yet they continue to support CHAS and many other charities.

“The Big Girly Quiz really is shaping up to be the perfect girls’ night in so please invite all your friends and family to take part to help us raise as much money as possible for some of Scotland’s most vulnerable children.”

Further details and updates about the Big Girly Quiz can be found on the Facebook Live event.

For further information please contact: Charlene Wilson, Press Officer.

Notes to Editors:

CHAS is the only charity in Scotland that provides hospice services for babies, children and young people with life-shortening conditions. The national charity offers palliative care and respite for the whole family via its two hospices, Rachel House in Kinross and Robin House in Balloch, and its CHAS at Home service supports families in their own homes and has teams working in hospitals across the whole of Scotland.

Children’s Hospices Across Scotland (CHAS) is on a mission to reach every family in Scotland that needs us. The hard truth is that right now, CHAS only reaches one in three children who die of a life-shortening condition in Scotland; we are determined to reach them all. Quite simply we need more specialist care providers to help reach every family, and to do that, we need to raise more money.

We make sure that no matter how short family’s time together may be, it is filled with happiness and vitality. We keep the joy alive by helping families to celebrate the lives of their children while they are together, and to honour their memory when they are gone.

Alongside the launch of the virtual children’s hospice, CHAS is supporting the NHS and Scottish Government in their national effort. Our at-home staff are helping sustain packages of care for children at home, and we are working with all three children’s hospitals in Scotland. CHAS’s support in hospitals includes the first hospital-based palliative care teams in the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow which was launched last year, and specialist colleagues working alongside the NHS in Edinburgh, Inverness, Aberdeen and Kilmarnock.

Follow CHAS on Twitter and Instagram: @supportCHAS, or like us on Facebook.