David Gandy, Dame Barbara Windsor and Pet Shop Boys help raise £300,000 to support people living with HIV

Barbara Windsor at a photocall to raise awareness for the St Pauls Church Garden Fundraiser Appeal, Covent Garden, London 25th May 2012

David Gandy, Dame Barbara Windsor and Pet Shop Boys last week helped raise £300,000 to support people living with HIV.

Lead singer of 80s super soul funk group Imagination, Leee John, unexpectedly took to the stage at Terrence Higgins Trust’s Auction, donating tickets to his Paris gig as he paid tribute to a friend lost to HIV. Terrence Higgins Trust’s annual Auction saw guests including Spencer Matthews, Nancy Del’ollio, Marc-Francis and Juan Pablo Yapez come together for an evening of frantic bidding and entertainment at Christie’s Auction House all raising money to support people living with and at risk of HIV in the UK.

Mariano Vivanco’s photograph of David Gandy went for twice the guide price, at £10,000 and it was a right old ‘carry on’ with a loveable sex pop Dame Barbara Windsor raising £4,500. On Wednsday night, The Auction raised an incredible £300,000 which helps Terrence Higgins Trust, the UK’s leading HIV and sexual health charity, deliver vitalservices including HIV testing, counselling and advice.

Fierce bidding is still happening in the online Auction, open to everyone until 22nd March 2016, and includes the much talked about official cast-signed Star Wars: The Force Awakens screen-used stormtrooper helmet.

Signed by Harrison Ford, John Boyega, Carrie Fisher, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, Lupita Nyong’o and many more top stars, the lot is already at £17,000, with five days of frenzied bidding still to go.

Other ‘money can’t buy’ lots still up for grabs include an exclusive tour of the studio of Phyllida Barlow, who is representing the UK in the 2017 Venice Biennale. Dinner with British designer, Dame Zandra Rhodes in her rainbow-themed London penthouse, as well as a date at Swingers, London’s new crazy golf club, and a luxury stay in the romantic city of Venice, can also still be snapped up on Christie’s online.

“[The] Auction showed the dedication and commitment of so many people to help ensure that people living with or affected by HIV have the support and services they need. A huge thank you to everyone who helped to make this year’s Auction another fantastic success. The generosity of  so many, whether it be by creating spectacular works of art, donating their time or proudly bidding, means we can continue our vital work.” – Sonya Trivedy, Fundraising Director at Terrence Higgins Trust

The Auction has raised over £3.5 million in its history. Barbara Windsor, Pictured above, is currently recording her final-ever scenes for BBC One saga EastEnders, which she first appeared in the role as Peggy Mitchell back in 1994.