There was glitz, glamour and Christmas generosity as gorgeous dogs, celebrities and dedicated supporters of The Mayhew attended our annual Tinsel and Tails charity fundraising gala on Tuesday 1^st December 2015.

The gala was a fabulous evening filled with animal tales, laughter, a few tears and the occasional “woof woof” as more than 200 people and their beloved four-legged friends got together to celebrate one common theme: the amazing cats and dogs which we have helped escape a life of cruelty, abandonment and neglect over the past year.

As the red carpet rolled out in the entrance of the Grand Connaught Rooms in Holborn, famous faces including Neil Morrissey and James McVey from the Vamps, turned up to show their support for our charity – with Neil bringing along his Jack Russell cross Tiggy, who he adopted from The Mayhew 11 years ago.

Neil Morrissey said: ‘’I got Tiggy when she was three-years-old. She’s everything to me, she’s my screensaver, my four- legged friend, my child, my princess. She was found as a puppy abandoned in the streets. She wasn’t microchipped so the owner couldn’t be traced.”

‘’The Mayhew is a fantastic place which does fantastic work. I would urge people to get down there today to rescue a pet. ‘’

Though, the dogs were the real stars of the show – with our TheraPaws dogs, Instagram famous pooches Marcel Le Corgi, Coco, Lelle, Winny the Corgi and Freda, and of course, Gordon, the deaf Staffie, who stayed with us for almost a year before he was adopted, stealing the limelight.

Guests including actress Sue Jameson, Peter Egan, Marc Abraham, Wendy Turner Webster and Kris James, from the up and coming band The Scheme, hit the red carpet alongside four of our lovely TheraPaws dogs. Lola, Ellie, Oscar and Dudley got to take a night off from volunteering with our much-loved community therapy project to lap up the attention and cuddles from celebrity guests and journalists.

Tinsel and Tails was a huge success, raising a record breaking £14,500 which will go back into helping more animals next year.

Guests were wined and dined all evening with a scrumptious 3-course meal and were treated to festive-filled entertainments including a luxury auction and raffle. There was a fantastic selection of prizes, including a holiday to Lake Como, a trip to the stately home where Downton Abbey is filmed and tickets to Old Trafford, home of Manchester United.

A video showcasing the work of our staff and volunteers was shown, which caused barks of appreciation, especially when the cats appeared on screen, and a few tears slipped out across the room as Gordon’s story was told. The film was shot by acclaimed cameraman David Jackson with a voiceover from actor Neil Conrich from Midsomer Murders, and you will be able to view it online very shortly.

Guests including Peter Egan, Sue Jameson and James McVey, and our very own Chief Executive Caroline Yates stepped up to the stage to re-tell heart-warming stories of neglected animals from the past year.

Everyone felt moved by new friend to The Mayhew, James McVey’s speech about ex-Mayhew cat Antonio, who is a special blood donor belonging to the very rare blood group B.

James McVey, 21, from band The Vamps, said: ‘’I’ve always loved animals. I grew up in Dorset with horses, cows and donkeys so it’s awesome to attend an event like this with incredible TheraPaws dogs.”

“I eventually want to adopt an older cat from The Mayhew as it’s so important to give pets a loving home. When I buy a house I’m heading to the rescue centre”

‘’Millions of animals need homes. It’s really important for me to tell people my age of the amazing work The Mayhew does and spread the word.’’

We were so appreciative to the support and kind donations from guests at Tinsel and Tails, as our supporters make The Mayhew possible.

Chief Executive, Caroline Yates, said: “It was a great night for The Mayhew. It’s fantastic to have Neil Morrissey and his partner Emma Killick here. I did the home visit when they adopted from us 11 years ago and now they’re back with a 14-year-old Tiggy to support us.”

”I’d like to thank everyone who came along and put their hands in the pockets for the pets. All the money raised will go towards rescuing and rehoming them.”

The Vamps are back with a bang with new single and album Wake Up and have kindly donated two tickets to one of their UK tours with the chance to meet the band afterwards, and you can be in the running to get your hands on them very soon. Keep an eye on The Mayhew website.

If you were unable to attend our event but would still like to donate to help us on our mission to help abandoned and neglected animals, then please click here. Or if you like to give an animal a second chance at happiness, then please check our cats and dogs up for adoption.

Pictures courtesy of Bonnie Baker and Graham Hilling.