Fundraising single from Portsmouth cancer charity mascot aims to become number 1 in children's chart

A charity single from Muddles The Bear, the friendly face of the Portsmouth-based Karen Ingram Foundation, is now streaming on all major digital platforms.

Tom Ingram, from Cosham, set up the foundation in 2008 after his mum sadly died from blood cancer non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Tom has raised thousands over the years to help research into the condition, and registered the Karen Ingram Foundation as a charity last year.

Follow Muddles The Bear is Tom’s latest fundraising effort, after teaming up with national company The Show Shop whose Parkdean Resorts characters Sid The Seagull and Lizzie The Lizard were a favourite of the Ingram family holidays for many years.

Tom, who was unaware at the time that he had contacted their original creator Martin Berger, said: ‘We are thrilled that the creator of national character favourites Sid and Lizzie, of whom I have fond memories as a child, is now also part of Muddles’ ongoing stories and activities.

‘Martin and the team have very generously donated their time and expertise to this project, and we are extremely grateful for their support.

‘Muddles very much represents a childhood innocence to do good in the world and we hope with this new song we can inspire youngsters to put down their video games and help others through acts of fundraising!’

With the song currently listed in the UK Children’s Song Charts, Tom hopes they can push it all the way to number one.

SEE ALSO: Fareham man organises 24-hour gaming charity challenge for British Heart Foundation after operation

Martin said: ‘Having had our own experiences of cancer in our family we were honoured to be approached by Tom and Muddles to help in the creation of a new children’s theme song to raise awareness and funds for vital cancer research.

‘When it transpired that Tom was coincidently a lifelong fan of characters with which I have a 32-year association, it made our partnering all the more perfect and we look forward to assisting Muddles further in his adventures.’

Follow Muddles The Bear is streaming on Spotify and all major digital music platforms including iTunes for 79p.

The charity is hosting a Zoom quiz night on Saturday, February 6, with tickets costing £3.50 per team. Visit eventbrite.co.uk/e/134345622373 to sign up.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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