Sunday for Sammy celebrates 25th anniversary with big show announcement
The biennial fundraising concerts will return in 2026, signalling a new era for the charity including two new big-name patrons
Five years ago, a crowd of North East entertainment household names gathered together on stage to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the first Sunday for Sammy concert.
As ever, the fundraising gig - known affectionately as the Geordie Command Performance - knocked it out of the park with its signature blend of top notch comedy and music, featuring the likes of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet stars Tim Healy, Jimmy Nail and Kevin Whately; Chris and Rosie Ramsey, Johnny Vegas, Trevor Horn, Joe McElderry, Denise Welch, Jason Cook, Jill and Chelsea Halfpenny, Lindisfarne’s Ray Laidlay and Billy Mitchell, Emmerdale’s Charlie Hardwick and Laura Norton and many more.
Two sell-out crowds at the Utilita Arena in Newcastle lapped up every moment of the biennial matinee and evening gigs, which raised thousands of pounds for the Sunday for Sammy Trust, a charity committed to offering grants to support up-and-coming performers and creative talent in the North East.
Little did we all know as the cast took their final bows following the always-special and roof-raising rendition of Run For Home, that we’d all be locked down in our houses inside a month.
Little did we also know that the 2020 Sunday for Sammy gigs could well have been the last, thanks to Covid-19 and all the uncertainty and ballooning production costs it left in its wake.
In the five years since those gigs, Sunday for Sammy founder Tim Healy, along with its long-time producer Ray Laidlaw and the rest of the team have been looking for a way to bring it back to the stage.
And at a thoroughly lovely breakfast event on the anniversary of the very first Sunday for Sammy concert (Feb 6), they brought a packed invited audience together in Newcastle’s County Hotel to announce that they’d found it.
“It’s been a long time coming, but we’re delighted to be able to say that Sunday For Sammy will be back on February 15, 2026,” said Ray who has been working behind the scenes for the past six months alongside Sunday For Sammy’s new partnership lead, Tony Apicella, plotting a year of celebration and activity in the run to its on-stage return.
“There were times we thought Covid had put a stop to it,” added Tim. “But when we got together for the Auf Wiedersehen, Pet 40th anniversary events last year, the money which was raised for Sunday Sammy meant we could start looking at bringing it back.”
You might say that offers a bit of a full circle moment.
It was the first Sunday for Sammy gig - organised by Tim and Jimmy as a tribute to their friend and co-star, Ronnie ‘Sammy’ Johnson - which brought the Auf Wiedershen, Pet gang back together for the first time in more than a decade to perform sketches, written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais.
The rapturous response they received at Newcastle City Hall on February 6, 2000 prompted a successful BBC comeback for the series.
Now it seems the affection for Auf Wiedershen, Pet has given Sunday for Sammy an all-important jump-start.
During Thursday’s event, which was hosted by stand up comic, long-serving member of the SFS backing singer line-up and 2026 event compere, Kelly Rickard and attended by North East mayor, Kim McGuinness, contributions also came from a number of performers who have benefited from Sunday for Sammy grants.
Actor Aimee Kelly, singer Hayley McKay, cellist Lucy Hoyle, musician Peter Tickell and Micky McGregor and Harriet Ghost from Hooley Theatre Company all gave testimony to the significance and importance of the support they’d received - and we got to enjoy some performances too.
Outside, a mobile billboard was belting out highlights from Sunday for Sammy gigs gone by, including Round Here - a rousing poem by Scott Tyrrell, performed by Tim, which opened the 2020 event.
There was also the first of many flashmob dance performances by students from Gateshead College - a new official Sunday for Sammy partner - to celebrate the 25th anniversary and promote the 2026 gigs.
The students danced to a song specially written by grant recipient Joe Allan and performed by Joe and fellow grantee Imogen Williams.
Back inside, the announcements kept coming in the form of two new patrons being unveiled.
International music star, The 1975’s Matty Healy - son of Tim and Denise Welch - and Vera actress icon, Brenda Blethyn have both become official supporters.
Speaking in a video recording, Matty, who performed at some of the earlier Sunday for Sammy gigs, said: “I’m very proud. It [Sunday for Sammy] has been in my family and in my heart for as long as I can remember.
“I’m specifically very interested in helping young people in this economy from working class and different backgrounds to be facilitated in the creation of art.
“It’s important for them, it’s very important for our society for people from the North East to be part of cultural production in our country as has historically been the case.
“I look forward to seeing you at the shows and seeing what we can do.”
Although the line-up for the Sunday for Sammy gigs is never revealed until the day itself - waiting to see who is going to walk on stage next is part of the fun! - there was a definite sense that the comeback concert is going to be a very special one.
Cllr Karen Kilgour, leader of Newcastle City Council, said: "I'm absolutely thrilled that Sunday for Sammy is returning. For more than two decades it's been one the greatest regular events we've had in the city, and I know our communities will be delighted for it to be back.
"There are some fantastic names lined up for what promises to be a spectacular occasion that makes a huge difference to a very important charity in the process."
Kim McGuinness added: “Sunday for Sammy has a special place in the hearts of people in Newcastle.
“I’m thrilled that this iconic show will return for the first time after the pandemic to celebrate its 25th anniversary. Sunday for Sammy captures what is so special about our region - showcasing our creativity and kindness, and bringing joy to others.”
Tickets for both Sunday for Sammy 2026 concerts on February 15, 2026 will go on sale at 10am on Saturday, February 15 (2025) from the Utilita Arena Newcastle website.