£270,000 Raised by Cyber Gambling Industry

The most familiar names in the egaming industry have raised more than £270,000 for Great Ormond Street Hospital at its inception raising the Stakes charity poker dinner and auction in London at Les Ambassadeurs Club the previous night.

Richard Glynn Ladbroke’s new chief executive was master of ceremony alongside Pageant Media founder Charlie Kerr and various other major heavy players in the casino industry such as PartyGaming, PKR, Microgaming, OpenBet, Evolution Gaming and Gamesys.  Actress Barbara Windsor and Italian cookery author Antonio Carluccio were among the celebrity guests.

The initiative aims to raise an initial £500,000 for a new high dependency bay in the Hospital’s Cardiac Critical Care Unit which will provide life-saving care for young patients.

The event entailed a champagne reception and a three-course dinner, the auction was held after dinner in the Red Room at Les Ambassadeurs Club which raised funds for charity.  The Auction also included a private cooking lesson with Antonio Carluccio and the chef managed to raise £14,000.  As always a knockout poker tournament was held after the main event and Warren Lush from PartyGaming crowned the winner after an eventful night.

The CEO of Ladbrokes said: “It’s really an amazing event and great initiative. I feel privileged to be a proud supporter of Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity.  It’s an industry first this Raising the Stakes event; and it personifies the support and approach of the internet casino industry.”

Charles Denton, chairman responsible for fundraising at Great Ormond Street children’s charity said: “I am delighted that the casino gaming industry has opened its hearts and wallets in support of Great Ormond Street Hospital.  The nurses will now have more space in the new four-bed bay funded by the gaming industry and a 24 hour intensive care unit for the hospital’s Cardiac Critical Care unit.”