THE duo behind a string of York businesses have teamed up with the star of TV hit Happy Valley for a rather special project.
A fundraiser at Overgate Hospice in Elland near Sowerby Bridge received a shock this week when she answered the phone to Sarah Lancashire from the who plays Halifax Police Sergeant Catherine Cawood in the show.
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Sarah called to offer her support to the charity through a collaboration with The Yorkshire Soap Company which has is owned by well-known York businessmen Marcus Doyle and Warren Booth, who own the Yorkshire Soap Company and The Imaginarium in Blake Street as well as The Society of Alchemists in Shambles.
Sarah gifted a bespoke Happy Valley candle to the cast and crew of the hit tv show as they wrapped filming last summer having worked with The Yorkshire Soap Company, to produce the special candle. The response to the story generated lots of interest and the company were inundated with requests by keen fans of the show and their products, eager to get their hands on their very own Sergeant Catherine Cawood Candle.
The company quickly identified an opportunity to release a limited number of these special candles with all of the proceeds from the sale going to a charity. Marcus and Warren invited Sarah Lancashire and Happy Valley writer Sally Wainwright to choose the charity to benefit.
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Sally, an Ambassador of Overgate Hospice, suggested that the proceeds should go to Overgate Hospice after the series filmed there in 2017. The Hospice was used as a filming location for scenes from episode one of the second series in which a character was receiving end-of-life care.
The limited edition candles were announced through The Yorkshire Soap Company’s social media channels on Wednesday (February 8) with the pre-order going live at 5pm that day. The interest in the items was phenomenal with requests for candles from as far away as the USA. The candles had sold out within three hours, with over £5,000 being raised for Overgate Hospice.
The company are currently speaking to their suppliers in the hope of securing another batch of candles with the intention of raising an additional £5,000 for the Hospice.
Alison Harwood, Chief Executive at Overgate Hospice, said: "The response to the launch of the candle has been incredible and this whole story has created such a buzz at the Hospice. Like many other charities, Overgate is feeling the impact of the cost of living crisis and support like this really does make a big difference to our ability to provide essential end-of-life care to our local community.
"I’d like to express heartfelt thanks on behalf of the Hospice to Sally and Sarah, as well as Warren and Marcus from The Yorkshire Soap Company."
Marcus said: "The truly amazing Sarah Lancashire shopped with us throughout the filming of all three series of Happy Valley, so when she approached us to create a personal gift from her, Sally Wainwright and Jess, one of the shows produces, we jumped at the opportunity.
"Following the overwhelming success of one social media post about the candle, I let Sarah Lancashire know and she immediately suggested we sell them for a charity based in The Happy Valley.
"After speaking to Sally, Overgate Hospice was chosen as the charity to benefit and we launched the candles for sale. To have sold out in 3 hours, raising £5,000 for Overgate, was incredible and we are now looking to produce more candles for release in early April with the hope of opening the pre-order for these very soon. Keep an eye on our social media channels, or sign up for notifications on our website, for further information. We are so proud to be supporting such a brilliant charity and look forward to working together on this exciting project.”
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