Performers from Karen Yates School of Dance tap their way through Children in Need world record


Dancers from the Karen Yates School of Dance are hoping to have tapped their way to a new world record as part of a Children in Need fundraiser.

Students who dance at classes run by Karen in Lye, Hagley, Amblecote and Colley Gate were among dancers across the country taking part in a tapathon on Sunday, November 20, for the BBC charity fundraiser, which aimed to get more than 7,596 people across the UK tapping at the same time to the same routine.

Karen managed to recruit 101 tap dancers of all ages for this year's world record attempt which she staged at St Saviour's Church in Hagley, and which was set to the tune of Fleur East's Play That Sax.

The previous year she'd enlisted 83 dancers who tapped to the sounds of Uptown Funk but the nationwide challenge was ultimately 233 dancers short of the target.

She said: "I got a few more this time, so I've done my bit. It was fantastic. Hopefully, we can do it this time."

Among the performers taking part were eight dancers who joined Karen on stage with entertainer Roy Castle for the first ever TV tapathon back in 1993 at the Manchester G-MEX centre.

To verify their attempt this time dance teams had to have photographs taken as well as having two independent witnesses present during the routine. The results will now be collated to determine whether collective efforts across the country managed to generate a new world record.

Karen, of Cemetery Road in Lye, and her dancers donated a total of £1,045 to Children in Need as part of the event.

The charity-minded dance instructor also handed over money raised from this year's pantomime Summer Cinderella, which was staged at Sedgley's Dormston centre in July.

A total of £1,353 was handed over to brave Stourbridge mum Deb Drew, who was left with devastating injuries after she tried to save a young boy from drowning off the coast of Devon in 2014.

And plucky Deb, aged 51, who is still in need of constant care, managed to attend the presentation with family and friends - despite a trip to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital earlier in the day!

A cheque for £1,333 was also made out to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust - which 30-year-old Stourbridge cystic fibrosis sufferer Cavan Arrowsmith received on the charity's behalf.

Karen also handed over £1,333 to Bowel Cancer UK - having chosen to support the charity after her mum Gwen underwent treatment for the disease earlier this year.

 

Funding Press Release