Red Noses Day! Africa Relief

A silly day. A serious day.

Every year the British charity Comic Relief has a special day for raising money. This day is called Red Nose Day because shops sell funny red noses and people wear them to school or work. Last year over four and a half million people wore the noses and the money they spent went to help special causes in the UK and in Africa. But noses are just a small part of the day.

Comic Relief uses humour and the comic talents of Britain’s best comedians to produce very funny shows on TV. During the shows the presenters ask the public to telephone and send money to help people all around the world. On the same day schools and people at work or home organise events to raise money for the charity. In 2002 the Harry Potter author J K Rowling wrote 2 books to raise money, the British group Westlife gave the money from their number one record and millions of television viewers sent donations. Sixty one million pounds were raised to help orphans in Rwanda, Aids victims in Africa and disabled people in the UK. And everyone had fun raising the money!

Each year the red noses change. In 2003 the nose was hairy. This year the theme of Red Nose Day is the ‘big hair day’. The charity wants people to do something silly with their hair to raise money. Some people are going to wear a silly wig to work or colour their hair a strange colour. One man is planning to have all his hair cut off and friends and family will pay him to do it. This haircut money will go to the charity. So if you are in the UK on March 11th do not be surprised if you see lots of silly people with strange hair and red noses. You might even see a car or a bus wearing a red nose. They might seem a bit silly but it is all for a good cause!!