Comic Relief

Comic Relief is an operating British charity, founded in 1985 by the comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Lenny Henry in response to famine in Ethiopia. The highlight of Comic Relief's appeal is Red Nose Day, a biennial telethon held in March, alternating with sister project Sport Relief. Comic Relief is one of the two high profile telethon events held in the United Kingdom, the other being Children in Need, held annually in November.

Comic Relief was launched live on Noel Edmonds' Late, Late Breakfast Show on BBC1, on Christmas Day 1985 from a refugee camp in Sudan. The idea for Comic Relief came from the charity worker Jane Tewson, who established it as the operating name of Charity Projects, a registered charity in England and Scotland.

On 8 February 1988, Lenny Henry went to Ethiopia and celebrated the very first Red Nose Day Telethon. Over 150 celebrities and comedians participated. The event raised 15 million British Pounds Sterling and attracted 30 million television viewers on The BBC Network. The highlight of Comic Relief is Red Nose Day. To date, Richard Curtis and Lenny Henry are still active participants of the Red Nose Day Telethon which continues to raise funds for numerous charities that help children in need and tackle world-wide poverty.

Comic Relief (disambiguation)

Comic Relief is a United Kingdom charity for the needy.

Comic Relief may also refer to:

Rory Root

Rory D. Root (November 8, 1957 – May 19, 2008) was the owner of Comic Relief, an influential comic book retailer in Berkeley, California.

Comic Relief was one of the first stores to stock graphic novels, presaging their popularity by many years. Root also made a point of supporting self-publishers and minicomics artists. In 1993, Root was awarded the Will Eisner Spirit of Retailing Award in honor of his exemplary work in promoting the genre.

He influenced many in the comics field, including Eric Reynolds of Fantagraphics.

Biography

Root attended the University of California, Berkeley, studying computer science, but dropped out of school just before graduating in order to pursue retailing. At first he managed a gaming store on Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley; after it closed he worked at Robert Beerbohm's comic book store, Best of Two Worlds, also on Telegraph Avenue.

Root and then-partner Michael Patchen opened Comic Relief on April 15, 1987, on University Avenue in Berkeley.

Death and demise of Comic Relief