Tag Archives: Ewan McGregor

Jemima Khan, Ewan McGregor & Robbie Turn Out at UNICEF UK Halloween Ball to Help Children of Syria

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Long-standing UNICEF Ambassadors Jemima Khan, Ewan McGregor and Robbie Williams were among guests at UNICEF UK’s star–studded Halloween Ball, raising vital funds for UNICEF’s work helping the children of Syria. The event raised an amazing £1million, made possible by the UK Government matching all donations on the night pound for pound.

UNICEF UK Ambassador, Jemima Khan said, “For over two years, the children of Syria have been witnessing and experiencing one horror after another. I have seen UNICEF’s work in emergencies all over the World. They work tirelessly to reach every child, but they cannot do it alone and the need has never been so urgent, particularly with winter approaching. We hope to raise vital funds tonight at The Halloween Ball this evening for the children of Syria and I am very grateful to the UK government who have pledged to match pound for pound everything we raise.”

UNICEF UK Halloween Ball UNICEF UK Halloween Ball UNICEF UK Halloween Ball

 

High-profile personalities from the worlds of entertainment, fashion and business,turned out at London’s iconic venue, One Mayfair, in fancy dress to support UNICEF’s work to help children caught up in the Syria crisis. More than four million Syrian children, one million of whom are refugees, are in urgent need of aid.

 

UNICEF UK Ambassador Robbie Williams gave an electrifying exclusive performance, with fellow Ambassador Ewan McGregor joining him on stage for a surprise rendition of the all time classic, Angels.

 

Throughout the evening, guests were treated to an immersive theatre extravaganza from Look Left Look Right in the crypt of the former church; as well as magical tricks from Drummond Money-Coutts. Isaac Ferry kick-started the DJ sets, followed by Queens of Noize DJs Tabitha Denholm and Lisa Moorish who took over the party until 2.00am. The whole venue was scented by Jo Malone London.

 

UNICEF UK Executive Director, David Bull said: “Many children caught up in the current Syria crisis have been killed, maimed, orphaned, displaced, witnessed violence and lost their family members and friends; the need is desperate. We are so grateful for the fantastic support that all of our guests at the first ever UNICEF UK Halloween Ball have shown this evening, and to the UK Government for matching pound for pound all donations made from tonight, and over the next three months, to UNICEF’s work for Syria’s children.”

 

Tonight’s match funding is part of the UK Government’s wider support for UNICEF’s work helping the children of Syria in what is currently the largest humanitarian operation in history. Over the next three months the UK Government will match pound for pound all public donations made to UNICEF’s work for the children of Syria.

 

UNICEF, the world’s leading children’s organisation, is working on the ground to provide water, education, medicine and psychological support inside Syria and for refugee children in five neighbouring countries. But the numbers are only getting bigger and lack of funding means UNICEF cannot reach every child in need.

 

UNICEF UK Ambassador, Ewan McGregor said: “As it stands today, there are more than one million child refugees and more than three million children needing urgent help inside Syria; the situation for them is critical. UNICEF is working day and night to provide clean water, vaccinations, education, and psychological support to those children. However, the essential supplies are running low; the Halloween Ball will play a very important role in raising the vital missing funds UNICEF needs to reach every child.”

 

UNICEF is the first great charity that the UK Government plans to support with match funding to help the children of Syria this winter.

International Development Secretary Justine Greening said, “Syria’s people are experiencing unimaginable hardship with millions of children in particular facing a bleak and uncertain future. The UK has already committed its largest ever humanitarian response to the crisis and we are now teaming up with UNICEF to double the power of donations from the British public. Our partnership with UNICEF means that donations to UNICEF’s appeal for the children of Syria will be matched pound for pound by the UK Government.”

 

Text ‘SYRIA’ to 70007 to donate £5 to help UNICEF reach even more children in desperate need.

Mo Farah, Robbie Williams, Ewan McGregor and Sienna Miller join forces to demand George Osborne keep his promises on aid

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Mo Farah, Robbie Williams, Ewan McGregor and Sienna Miller join forces to demand George Osborne keep his promises on aid

 

Chancellor George Osborne will be in the good books of a host of stars – including Mo Farah, Robbie Williams, Ewan McGregor and Sienna Miller – IF he keeps his promises on international aid in the forthcoming Budget on March 20th.

 

Stars from the world of music, film and sport have joined forces to write a joint letter to George Osborne, urging him to take action to help end world hunger. Nearly thirty high profile individuals beseech him to keep his promises on international aid and crack down on tax dodging by big businesses working in poor countries.

 

The letter:

Dear Chancellor,

 

I am writing to thank you for your leadership in protecting the aid budget. By announcing in the Budget that the UK will give 0.7% of national income to life saving aid, you’ll be making good a 43-year-old promise and helping millions of people in their fight against poverty and hunger

 

In 2012, the UK demonstrated inspiring global leadership and community spirit through our hosting of the Olympic Games. This year, the UK Government has an opportunity to build on that promising legacy, when it hosts a major summit on food and hunger and chairs the G8 in June.

 

Keeping our word and doing the right thing are part of what Britain stands for. We can be proud that, in the face of crises, in good times and bad, the British public show great strength and generosity. Because of this, we can be collectively proud that huge strides have been made in reducing poverty and 14,000 fewer children are dying each day than in 1990.

 

The world is at a tipping point where we could abolish absolute poverty but hunger is threatening to reverse these achievements. Food prices have been higher than ever in recent years, affecting people everywhere and climate change is making things worse.

 

By matching the strength of spirit of the British people, we could be the generation that starts to end hunger.

 

No budget decisions can be taken lightly, but investing in the long term will be cheaper for all of us. We simply can’t afford hunger to rise to the emergency famine levels we saw in 2011.

 

In order for poor countries to be self-sufficient, as well as investment in aid they also need their own revenue to spend on fighting hunger. That is why the IF campaign is also calling on the UK and other governments to change global rules to make sure companies pay their fair share of tax in the poor countries in which they operate.

 

Along with others, I am proud that the UK is keeping its promise to provide 0.7% of our income for life saving aid and leading the way on vital tax reforms, which will provide a lasting solution for the world’s poorest people.

 

Yours Sincerely

 

Mo Farah, Olympic Gold Medallist; Robbie Williams, Singer; Ewan McGregor, Actor

Bill Nighy, Actor; Jemima Khan, Journalist and Campaigner; Sienna Miller, Actor; Raymond Blanc, Chef; Dermot O’Leary, Presenter; Helena Christensen, Model; Angelique Kidjo, Singer; Michael Sheen, Actor; Eddie Izzard, Comedian; Shazia Mirza, Comedienne; Tamsin Greig, Actor; Tom Hiddleston, Actor; Keeley Hawes, Actor; Joanne Froggatt, Actor; Fay Ripley, Actor; Valentine Warner, Chef; Vivek Singh, Chef; Emilia Fox, Actor; Miriam Margolyes, Actor; Jimmy Doherty, Presenter ; Roger Lloyd Pack, Actor ; Billy Boyd, Actor; Atul Kochar, Chef; Jun Tanaka, Chef, Cat Deeley, TV Presenter

 

 

Jenny Ricks, Enough Food for Everyone spokesperson said:

“Millions of people across the UK backed Make Poverty History and we can be proud that the Government will next week deliver on a promise we made then to the world’s poorest.

“British aid will help many of the 1 in 8 people in the world who go to bed hungry each night.

 

“This Budget can also assist poor countries to help themselves by enabling them to collect taxes from companies refusing to pay their fair share.

 

“Trillions of pounds is hidden in tax havens while people in the UK are struggling to make ends meet and in poor countries two million children starve to death every year.

“Cracking down on tax dodging in this year’s Budget would be a win-win – it will help poor people abroad but also those at home.”

Enough Food for Everyone IF is a coalition of 160 organisations and counting which have joined together to campaign for action by the G8 on the issue of global hunger. The last time we worked together at this scale was for Make Poverty History. Now that the G8 group of world leaders are returning to the UK in June, we are demanding they take action on hunger.

 

Poor countries lose around $160 billion every year to tax dodging, money which could be used to support vital services or invested in agriculture to make sure everyone has enough food. That’s more than three times what they receive in aid and is enough money to save the lives of 230 children under 5 every single day – that’s almost 8 primary school classes

The Government has pledged to make tackling tax avoidance by multinationals a priority for the G8 summit. The UK has an opportunity to show real leadership by putting its own house in order in the Budget.

 

Sign up now at www.enoughfoodif.org and make sure the G8 leaders put food on the agenda when they meet in the UK in June.

UNICEF famous faces join campaigners to speak up for children at Rio

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UNICEF famous faces join campaigners calling on government to speak up for children at Rio

Ewan McGregor, Rio Ferdinand, Eddie Izzard, Keira Knightley & more get involved

Ewan McGregor, Keira Knightley, Rio Ferdinand, Eddie Izzard, Keeley Hawes, Simon Reeve and Martin Bell are just some of the high profile figures who have joined UNICEF UK’s campaign calling on the government to speak up for children at this week’s Rio Earth Summit.

* McGregor, Knightley, Izzard, Hawes and Bell all filmed video messages for UNICEF UK’s Speak Up campaign.
* On 7th June, broadcaster and UNICEF supporter Simon Reeve joined young UNICEF supporters at a Rio discussion event with environment minister, Caroline Spelman.
* On 12th June Rio Ferdinand tweeted a series of comedy twitpics under the hashtag #Rio4Rio, urging his 2.8 million followers to sign UNICEF UK’s Speak Up petition.
* On 13th June, young campaigners met with Nick Clegg in Whitehall and handed him a list of the thousands of signatories who have signed the petition so far.

Rio Ferdinand, a long term UNICEF supporter, caused a Twitter stir last Tuesday when he tweeted a cryptic twitpic which read “Everyone’s asking ‘What’s happening with Rio?’” alongside a picture of him looking quizzical. Only from his later tweets – which included an image of the footballer wearing a feathered carnival head dress – did it become clear that Ferdinand was tweeting to raise awareness of UNICEF UK’s Speak Up campaign to ensure children are at the heart of the Rio Earth Summit’s agenda.

UNICEF supporters Keira Knightley, Eddie Izzard, and Keeley Hawes joined UNICEF Ambassadors Ewan McGregor and Martin Bell in recording special video messages stating that they are “speaking up for children at the Rio Earth Summit.”

Rio Ferdinand said:

“Speaking as a Rio, I know life isn’t all carnivals, beaches and playing football. At the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro global leaders will discuss the future of the planet and we want them to think about the world’s children. That’s why I’m speaking up for children with UNICEF UK and hope that everyone who follows me on Twitter will do the same.”

Simon Reeve said:

”We have to think more long-term and protect our planet for future generations. And so of course we have to get youngsters and children involved, and make them central to the debates and discussions that take place in Rio.”

Eddie Izzard said

“There is a massive opportunity for the UK government to put children at the heart of the Rio Earth summit. Children should be at the top of the summit agenda.”

Sign the Speak Up For Children petition at www.unicef.org.uk/speakup

Frost's Review of 2011

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2011 was an eventful political year, with the Arab Spring, phone Hacking and the death of more than one tyrant. On the flip side, it was also a year of wedding fever, Prince William finally made an honest women of Kate Middleton on April 29. Kate Moss and Jamie Hince, Lily Allen and Sam Cooper (she also announced her pregnancy), Rachel Weisz and Daniel Craig, Prince Albert and Charlotte, Zara Phillips and Mark Tindall and Paul McCartney and Nancy Shevell all tied the knot. Kim Kardashian got married too, but so briefly it is barely worth mentioning.

There was tragedy when Japan was struck by an record 9.0-magnitude earthquake and a tsunami. Followed by nuclear disaster at Fukushima, which is still being cleared up by brave workers, at serious risk to their own health.

Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito were acquitted of the murder of Meredith Kercher.

In August London burned as riots spread all over England, people died, lost their homes and taxpayers were left with a bill of over 100 million.

The Arab Spring started when 26-year-old vegetable seller Mohamed Bouazizi. set himself on fire in protest in a Tunisian marketplace on December 17th 2010. It lead to leaders all over the Arab world standing down including Hosni Mubarak (Egypt), Tunisia’s Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, and the death of Gaddafi in October.

Silvio Berlusconi also finally stepped down.

Osama Bin Laden was killed ten years after 9/11.

The press went mad over Pippa Middleton’s bottom. As did PR companies.

Super Injunctions were the buzzword of the year, but the name of the footballer came out after he was named by multiple people on Twitter. The film star who slept with the same prostitute as Wayne Rooney, however, got away with it. Our article on it was one of our most popular of the year, getting over 14,000 hits in a matter of hours

Borders book store closed down, as did the Space Shuttle Programme and Harry Potter ended after a decade.

The Iraqi war ended in December. A date set by the Bush administration.

Liam Fox lost his job.

The Phone Hacking scandal ran and ran.

Charlie Sheen lost it, but bounced back.

Aung San Suu Kyi was finally released from house arrest.

Frost’s Politician of the year is the people of Libya.

Anders Behring Breivik went on an murderous rampage in Norway on the Island of Utoya, leaving over 80 people dead and many more injured. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg called the attack a “national tragedy” and the worst atrocity in Norway since World War II. Stoltenberg further vowed that the attack would not hurt Norwegian democracy, and said the proper answer to the violence was “more democracy, more openness, but not naivety”. In his speech at the memorial service on 24 July 2011, he said what a proper reaction would be: “No one has said it better than the AUF girl who was interviewed by CNN: ‘If one man can show so much hate, think how much love we could show, standing together.’

The end of Harry Potter.

Frost started a campaign to end Prescription charges in England, the only place in the so called ‘United’ Kingdom still paying them.

Jessie J had a breakthrough year and confessed to being bisexual.

David Walliams swam the Thames. He raised £1 million for Sports relief.

Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher split.

As did J-Lo and Marc Anthony

Ryan Gosling had a brilliant year and was in the brilliant Drive. http://frostmagazine.com/2011/09/drive-film-review/

Sir David Attenborough dazzled again with Frozen Planet.

Frost Women of the year: Kate Middleton. After ten years and two break-ups, Catherine Elizabeth Middleton finally married her Prince Charming. Their wedding was watched by more people than 20 million people and the new Duchess of Cambridge has been wowing press and public alike with her style, charm and poise.

Man of the year: Steve Jobs. Steve Jobs died too young, aged 56, after a long battle with cancer. He changed the world with his vision and business acumen and when he died the outpouring of grief would rival that of Princess Diana. A true loss of a visionary man.

Most inspirational person: Eva Schloss. Eva survived the holocaust. She lost her father and her brother, her mother also survived and went on to marry Otto Frank and Eva became Anne Frank’s step-sister. She is truly the most inspirational women I have ever met. If you don’t believe me, read her books. The Promise: The Moving Story of a Family in the Holocaust
or Eva’s Story: A Survivor’s Tale by the Step-Sister of Anne Frank
[Full disclosure: I was in the West End Production of the play of Eva’s life; And Then They Came For Me.]

Kim Jong-il, Lucien Freud, Christopher Hitchens, Liz Taylor, Amy Winehouse and Vaclav Havel all died in 2011.

Adele and Katy Perry released the albums of the year.

Kristen Wiig co-wrote and starred in the hilarious Bridesmaids, which proved women could be funny.

Unemployment was high and economical troubles rumbled throughout the year. The US lost their triple AAA credit rating.

Finally, a great article.

http://frostmagazine.com/2011/10/top-10-common-faults-with-human-thought/

Ewan McGregor had no ideal woman

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Ewan McGregor didn’t have an ideal woman “checklist”.

The ‘Beginners’ actor – who is due to celebrate his 16-year anniversary with wife Eve Mavrakis next week – explained while he doesn’t know what the secret to their lasting romance is, he “fell in love” with her instantly.

He said: “I don’t know what keeps us together. I hit 40 this year and I’ve got friends of the same age who haven’t found a partner yet.

“I didn’t have a checklist for my ideal woman. I was very young when we met, and I just fell in love with her and knew I wanted to be with her, and I still want to be with her.”

The 39-year-old star – who raises four daughters with Eve, biological children Clara, 15, and Esther, 10, as well as adopted kids Jamiyan, nine, and a baby girl whose name has not yet been revealed – explained the couple are raising their brood with traditional Scottish values passed down from his own parents.

Ewan added to the Daily Mail newspaper: “We go back to visit my mum and dad in Crieff every summer and the kids love it. My knowledge of parenting comes directly from the way I was raised by my parents – I think that politeness and manners are very important.”