Portsmouth cosplayers put a smile on neighbours' faces by dressing up to clap for the NHS

Every week, people across the UK come to their front doors on Thursday evening to show their appreciation for hard working NHS staff and healthcare workers.

But one group of people is going the extra mile to try and brighten up their neighbours’ day.

The Hampshire Cosplay for Charity group has been coming out to clap for the NHS in a variety of different costumes, right across the county.

Cosplayer Andy Hornby, 41 from Southsea, said it's a way to keep everyone’s spirits up.

He said: ‘We’ve been running the cosplay group for a few years now, doing bits and bobs for charity.

‘But a lot of the events we we’re going to do this year have been cancelled, so we’ve had to get creative.

‘We’ve got a Facebook group with all the other cosplayers and it’s just sort of spiralled from there.’

The group, which has 110 members, has seen members posting videos of themselves clapping, to the delight of their neighbours.

‘Our neighbours have been brilliant with it,’ Andy said.

‘My partner Samantha and I let people know in advance which outfits we’re going to wear and they always seem really excited about it.

‘As a group we absolutely love doing charity work so everyone is happy to pitch in and do something for their neighbours.’

Despite lockdown making birthday visits and fair appearances impossible, the group is still doing things for charity.

Members are doing birthday videos, with the proceeds going to charity.

Andy said: ‘With lockdown putting a downer on children’s birthdays, people are coming to us asking for birthday messages from Spider-Man or a stormtrooper.

‘We’re putting the money from that towards a charity called From Leia With Love – which was set up by a woman in Basingstoke after her child Leia died in 2018.

‘It’s nice that we can still do things for people in circumstances like these.’

This Thursday evening, Andy will be clapping for the NHS dressed as Star-Lord from Guardians Of The Galaxy.

A message from the Editor

Thank you for reading this story on portsmouth.co.uk. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to portsmouth.co.uk and enjoy unlimited access to local news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit our Subscription page now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.