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Blues Legends to Attend Fundraising Beattie Nostalgia Night - Ipswich Town News

Blues legends Paul Mariner, Eric Gates and Brian Talbot are set to attend a fundraising Night to Remember Kevin Beattie at the Royal Hotel in Clacton on Tuesday 26th February.

Beattie died aged 64 in September and the evening, which is being sponsored by the PFA and will be compèred by Stuart Jarrold, has been arranged by his friend and Town fan Malcolm Thompson.

"The fact Paul is flying in from the States says a lot about how much Kevin was loved by his peers," Thompson told the Colchester Gazette.

"It should be a wonderful night of football fun - an emotional evening of nostalgia and fundraising and one not to be missed.

"There will be stories about the great man and a chance for fans to win prizes, with a giant raffle and auction being held to raise funds for Kevin's wife, Maggie, who sadly suffers with Multiple Sclerosis.

"Kevin was my childhood hero from the terraces and in later years he became a dear friend, who I miss dearly.

"I miss our football chats on the phone most Friday nights. Sometimes they went on into the early hours of the morning.

"And with the club in such a mess at the bottom of the Championship table, I miss his honest and sometimes brutal opinions about what's going on at Portman Road.

"It'll be nice for one evening to remember the days when Ipswich were a truly great club, full of internationals, winning trophies and playing at a packed Portman Road.

"It'll be a fantastic night with lots of stories, including a tale about Kevin riding around the team hotel on a police motorbike on the morning of the FA Cup final!

"Above all, I just want to do Kevin proud by giving Town fans a chance to say goodbye the way he would have wanted - laughing, crying, having a few beers and talking football.”

Entry is £5, including a free souvenir programme courtesy of Clacton Printers, with all proceeds from the evening going to Maggie.

Raffle prizes include watches, vouchers, Champagne, beer, wine, whisky and vodka, while items including signed Ipswich, West Ham and England shirts, a signed Arsenal football, a snooker cue signed by all the top players, a signed Micky Flanagan DVD and tickets to watch Essex Cricket Club will be up for auction.

Email malcolmthompson10@outlook.com or call 07743 171773 to book tickets, make a donation or place an advert in the programme.

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