A Seaton born singer and Hollywood actor has exceeded his fundraising target after four months of dedicated entertaining.

Billy Walker set himself a challenge of raising £20,000 by the end of the year in order to help the Hospice at Home West Cumbria's Emergency Appeal.

The appeal was launched to help the charity bridge the gap in the income due to the coronavirus pandemic.

What started in April as an impromptu serenade for his neighbours in Seaton before the national clap for carers, Billy started getting requests to sing for people who were isolated by having to shield from the virus.

He also had requests from care homes to sing for residents in their car parks and gardens to bring some joy to some of the most vulnerable members of the West Cumbrian community. With a PA system kindly loaned from Workington Amateur Dramatic Society, Billy gave up his time for free, going out with his Hospice collection bucket and performed over 80 times.

Billy said “When the pandemic started I was feeling really low. My career had to go on a break and I just wanted to do something that would help people in my local community, but also give me focus. I wanted to bring smiles to people’s faces as we all were coping with feelings of isolation and the pressure of the virus.”

He was determined to raise as much money as possible and he decided to give everyone an opportunity to hear his voice in the comfort of their own homes. The talented singer locked himself away at home for six days, and on the seventh day, presented a charity album with all profits going to Hospice at Home West Cumbria. The acoustic album, aptly named “And On The 7th Day”, was released on iTunes and Amazon music, with physical copies stocked around West Cumbria in Tesco and local stores. The album boasts some fantastic stripped back cover versions with duets from Stephanie Fearon and Sally Barker from The Voice UK.

On August 23, after his final performance organised by Bellcare as a thank you to all of West Cumbria’s carers, Billy smashed his target with a total of £20,435.

Hayley McKay, head of marketing and income generation at Hospice at Home West Cumbria said: “When Billy told me he wanted to raise £20,000 by the end of the year I told him that was a fantastic goal but a tall order in such a short space of time. I can’t believe he has raised so much in just four months! I want to thank Billy and everyone out there who supported him. This donation will make a huge difference to our charity and will go a long way to ensuring the people and families who need us most, can continue to be supported by our fantastic team of nurses and support staff.”

Billy is now embarking on a new chapter and moving away from the area for work but he will be back home later in the year. His albums are still available for sale so the total money raised will continue to climb. He said: “The experience I have had over these past four months has been life changing and I thank every single person who bought a CD, put a pound on the Hospice bucket, and sent me messages of support – it really has been overwhelming. This has been a community effort and I am honoured to have been able to raise people’s spirits and raise so much money for my local Hospice.”

There is still a chance to support Billy and Hospice at Home West Cumbria by buying the album in Tesco Workington, Seaton Pharmacy and the Hospice at Home West Cumbria shops in Workington and Whitehaven.

For more information on Hospice at Home West Cumbria go to: www.hospiceathomewestcumbria.org.uk. And for further information on Billy Walker visit his website at: www.iambillywalker.com