UrbanWire

UrbanWire attended the NKF charity show on Sunday and realised that the phone lines weren’t the only ones buzzing.

Since news of National Kidney Foundation (NKF) having close to $189 million in reserve funds hit the streets last week, many have been wondering whether to dial that 1900 number to raise the cash needed for patients on dialysis.

Apparently, Singaporeans aren’t sceptical or cynical at all. The 1st part of the annual National Kidney Foundation charity show on April 11 – the 2nd part of the show continues this Sunday April 18 – ignited the generous spirit of many charitable Singaporeans who have called the hotlines, raising a whopping $1.3 million in the nearly 4-hour show and $6.7 million in total. UrbanWire brings you the highlights.

The night belonged to screaming fans, mostly teenage girls. Taiwanese boy band Energy set the record of earning $70,000 worth of calls with a 10-minute song and dance performance during the 1st half hour of the show. The boys earned another $50,000 when they showed off their basketball skills with Rock records artiste Lin You Wei, former member of boy band Wewe in the later part of the show.

The girls continued their eye candy feast when 1 of Asia’s best rock bands Mayday (Wu Yue Tian), milked roughly $60,000 by skipping 55 times on the skipping rope, with the literal meaning of getting their fans to call the 6855 hotline, which means making 5 donations with just one call.

Our local celebrities took on the much tougher, more dangerous challenges.
Pastor-turned-singer, Sun Ho awed the audience at the MediaCorp TV Studio with her bare back being the bulls’ eye for 5 sharp darts.

However, homegrown actress-host Sharon Au and versatile director-host-actor Jack Neo rightly earned the respect and tears of many as Sharon engaged in some sword “play” and Jack fought with the bees.

Au, who climbed a flight of swords of a ladder and sat on swords, was seen experiencing some pain and the audience was deeply moved to tears. Eyes still visibly red even after the show, Sharon explained to reporters backstage after the event.

“If I can get the same effect (raising a total of $120,000) as you saw on TV just now, I do not mind [substituting the swords for fake ones],” answered Au in Mandarin when probed on whether she had considered staging a performance instead of the stunt.

“I started practising this early March and kept it from my mum. She cried really badly when she saw me squeezing into the air-con vent last year. I wouldn’t know what she would do if she found out that I am doing this,” explained Au.

As much as she had tried to keep it from her mum, the extensive media coverage on Channel 8 exposed her secret and made Mrs Au personally request tickets from the NKF to attend the event.

“I heard that the camera was cutting scenes of me and my mum when I was doing the stunt, the crew even joked that it was more exciting to watch my mother cry than me doing the stunt,” joked Sharon.

Having to face as many as 50, 000 bees in a tiny area was definitely not an easy task, especially when Jack Neo, with only netting over his face and neck, was requested to remove his glasses and stay stationary among these buzzing insects. However, his daredevil act earned a total of $70, 000 worth of calls.

“I told the personnel, the more I rehearse, the more I get stung, might as well just let me try once and for all. They told me that the maximum number of stings that a normal human can take is 20, so I was thinking, I shall run when I get 30,” joked veteran Jack Neo in Mandarin when interviewed during the reception after the event.
“The bees actually flew into my pants, frankly speaking, it was scary, but my only thought and wish then was that the audiences would call and donate, then it would all be worthwhile,” he humbly said.

The bees might be buzzing in the pants, but we know the phone lines are buzzing too, thanks to the amazing stunts and performances put on by these endearing celebrities.

NKF Charity Hotlines are as follows:
1 call: 1900-112-6868
3 calls: 1900-112-6833
5 calls: 1900-112-6855