Our entertainers form the heart of Spread a Smile. We are very lucky to have an incredible team of entertainers, who have come to us based on personal recommendations and have had extensive professional experience in the entertainment industry. We have a range of magicians, fairies, singers, face painters and a spontaneous poet to ensure that every age group from newborns to eighteen-year-olds and every taste can be catered for.
Our entertainers tell us that joining Spread a Smile has been a life-changing experience. Many of them have been with us since the charity was established.
Here’s what some of them had to say about working with Spread a Smile:
“I have been so fortunate to have travelled the world, to do and see things that I would never have dreamed of growing up. I have met Royalty, stood on stage in front of sell-out theatres in the West End, and performed live on television in front of 15 million people. But I promise you, all of it means absolutely nothing, when compared to the smile on the face of a child, or a glint in their eye, when you can take them away from everything, even just for a few seconds, into a pain-free world of make believe where absolutely anything is possible. Of everything I have been lucky enough to achieve in my professional life, working with, and subsequently being asked to become a patron for Spread a Smile is at the very top of the list.” Jamie
“I love working with Spread a Smile because the organisation is brilliantly run, well organised and totally focused on their goal to provide moments of joy and happiness for kids and teenagers in hospitals. I am privileged to work with a talented team of entertainers where ego is always left at the door and as a team we try our best to make as many people happy as we can within the limited time we have to do it. Whilst we cannot ease pain or fix their condition, we can, for a few minutes at least, allow them to forget why they are in hospital and give them a chance to react and behave like any other child. We give them a chance to enjoy the feelings of fun and laughter the other kids take for granted. Our visits are a highlight of the children’s day and sometimes they really look forward to our visits. Giving a child a sense of excitement and hope is a great way to help them mentally if not physically. Spread a Smile has become a very important charity to be aligned with. It is an honour and privilege to represent them.” Nick
“Working for Spread a Smile is without question one of the most rewarding things I do. Each child I meet in hospital is a star. They have such a positive outlook on life and although it is me who dresses like a superhero; they are my heroes. Seeing them laugh and smile and forget their surroundings for just a small amount of time is the greatest gift I can give.” Dov
“To make a child laugh, to help them forget for a moment that they are in a hospital or in pain, is a real joy. One father told me the doctors were able to reduce his daughter’s morphine drip after I had visited – such a humbling thing to hear, and a sign of how important Spread a Smile’s work is.” Felicity