Broadcaster Gyles Brandreth to present BBC Radio 4 appeal

We are delighted to announce that broadcaster, author and long-time CBM supporter Gyles Brandreth will present a BBC Radio 4 appeal to raise vital funds for our sight-saving work.

The appeal will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on Sunday 12^th February at 7.54am and 9.25pm and on Thursday 16th February at 3.27pm. It will also be available online from Sunday morning – listen on the BBC website.

Gyles Brandreth is a writer, broadcaster, actor and former MP, well known for regular TV appearances including Celebrity Gogglebox, Have I Got News For You, Great Canal Journeys, The One Show and This Morning. One of the stars of Just a Minute on BBC Radio 4 since the 1980s, he has written numerous books and co-presents a weekly podcast about words: Something Rhymes With Purple.  Gyles has generously supported CBM for over 20 years, but this is the first time he will speak publicly about his support for our work.

He says:

“I’m a supporter of the charity CBM– it’s a cause I’ve been proud to support, with my wife, for more than 20 years. We support CBM because we think it’s shocking that people still become blind because of conditions that could be easily treated, or struggle to see because they can’t get a pair of glasses. Too often, for people in the world’s poorest places, losing your sight also means losing the chance to go to school, earn a living or live independently. And yet cataracts can be treated with a straightforward operation. But for too many people living in poverty, treatment is out of reach.

CBM is helping to change that, working alongside local hospitals and health workers to improve access to sight-saving services, like cataract surgery. It’s amazing work.”

The BBC Radio 4 appeal will focus on the story of Memory, a 7 year-old girl from rural Malawi, who lost her sight to cataracts. Cataracts are the leading cause of blindness worldwide. They can be removed with sight-restoring surgery – for a child, under general anaesthetic, the operation costs just £95. But for families like Memory’s in rural Malawi, too often treatment is out of reach.

Where a child is born with cataracts, the condition must be treated in the first few years of life or it will lead to permanent, avoidable blindness. Funds raised by the BBC Radio 4 appeal will help improve access to sight-restoring surgery, glasses and support for people in the world’s poorest communities.

Don’t miss Gyles Brandreths’ Radio 4 appeal:

• Sunday 12^th February at 7.54am and 9.25pm
• Thursday 16^th February at 3.27pm.
• on bbc.co.uk/radio4/appeal

Please help spread the word and encourage your friends and family to listen in! And don’t forget to keep an eye on your inbox and CBM UK’s Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook pages for updates.