Last night’s Escape to Victory screening at Greshams raised £1,900 for The Beat Goes On, the campaign raising funds for a statue of Blues legend Kevin Beattie.
Russell Osman, John Wark, Laurie Sivell and Kevin O’Callaghan were at the event to speak about the making of the film in which Beattie was the body double for Michael Caine and also starred Sylvester Stallone.
Greshams managing director Mark Calver, a member of The Beat Goes On committee, said: "An audience of 150 were treated to a trip down memory lane. The film, called 'the greatest ever football film' by host Mark Murphy, was wonderful to see and we look forward to running other events to celebrate Kevin's memory.”
Meanwhile, the Proper Comedy night at Portman Road a fortnight ago raised a further £200 for the campaign.
Led by the EADT and Ipswich Star in conjunction with BBC Radio Suffolk and TWTD, The Beat Goes On was launched on December 18th last year on what would have been Beattie’s 65th birthday. The campaign is now around £23,000 off meeting its target.
You can make a donation online via the Go Fund Me page or send a cheque made payable to ‘The Beat Goes On’ to Kevin Beattie Statue Appeal, EADT, Portman House, 120 Princes Street, Ipswich, IP1 1RS.
There are also collection buckets at reception at the EADT’s offices and at BBC Radio Suffolk.
You can find The Beat Goes On campaign website here.