Celebrity Advent calendar takes a final bow for Devon-grown charity Spark UK

Major celebrity names are making one last Christmas appearance for a popular video All-Star Advent Calendar in support of North Devon youth mental health charity Spark UK.

Some of the UK’s most famous names have teamed up with the charity once again to help inspire and support young people as the innovative online Advent calendar enters its fifth and final year.

This year’s line-up features an array of well-known faces including All-Star ‘regulars’ Sir Stephen Fry, actor and comedian Henry Rowley and award-winning tenor Alfie Boe.

Videos will be released each day throughout December and this year’s theme ‘A Message to My Younger Self’ will see the celebs share the advice, reflections, and encouragement they wish they could have given to themselves growing up.

Spark UK was founded during the Covid pandemic in 2020 when a group of Ilfracombe teenagers decided they were fed up with complaining to each other about the lack of mental health support and created their own ‘curriculum’ to support themselves and others.

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Today the charity provides a variety of online resources for schools to share with students and work into their own curriculum, as well as a new digital platform called Spark Youth which is supported by National Lottery funding and offers mental health education and support for those aged 16 to 25.

Above: Spark UK's Conor Warren with charity trustees and North Devon MP Ian Roome. Credit: Spark UK

A new children’s self-care series called Sparkie & Friends is soon to be released as storybooks and an educational programme.

The All-Star Advent Calendar was one of the first things the Spark team created and has been a great success.

Conor Warren, founder of Spark UK, said: “The All-Star Advent Calendar has been an amazing journey over the past five years. We’ve been so lucky to have so many incredible people support us, from Sir Stephen Fry and Dame Judi Dench to Bradley Walsh and Dame Emma Thompson, all helping young people to open up and have conversations about mental health.

“This final year feels really special, as we reflect on how far we’ve come and the legacy the calendar leaves behind.

“Seeing celebrities take to their own platforms to talk about mental health is exactly what we hoped for when we started, sparking conversations everywhere.”

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Conor was just 14 when he founded Spark UK and it has grown into a national platform reaching hundreds of schools.

He added: “It all started with a group of school friends in North Devon who were frustrated by the outdated advice and lack of mental health support available in schools.

“We decided that instead of just talking about the problem, we’d try to change it, by creating our own mental health curriculum and sparking real conversations.

“We believe it’s vital to normalise mental health, especially for young people, because open conversations are what help break the stigma.

“We are immensely proud of what we’ve achieved so far and are excited by what the future holds for Spark UK in supporting youth mental health.”

The All Star Advent Calendar launched yesterday (Monday, December 1) and can be found at https://www.allstaradvent.co.uk