TV favourites support family fundraiser

Lee Tanswell with 18-month-old daughter Ruby and Coronoation Street Star Antony Cotton

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Familiar faces from our TV screens were in Rochdale today (Saturday 29 January 2011) to support a fundraising event.

Antony Cotton, who plays Sean in Coronation Street, Will Ash who plays Chris Mead in Rochdale based drama Waterloo Road and Shameless actress Catherine Tyldesley attended the family fun day and winter baby sale at Sandbrook Primary School to help raise money for baby Ruby from Reddish, Stockport.

Ruby Tanswell has a tumour covering 90 percent of her windpipe.

The tot was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare soft tissue cancer, after Ruby’s mum; Adelle Wright, insisted something was wrong, despite being sent away from the doctors three times.

Ms Wright was so worried for her daughter she rushed her to A&E and was later told the action may have saved Ruby’s life.

Ruby has now had three operations and is undergoing chemotherapy.

On Monday she will undergo a fourth operation. The doctors have told the family they will need to travel to America for special radiotherapy treatment.

Today’s event was organised by friends of the family in a bid to raise money to help them manage when they travel to America and to help ease the financial pressures at home, as Ruby’s mum and dad, Lee Tanswell, are currently off work.

Speaking to Rochdale Online, Mr Tanswell said: “It is amazing what everyone has done for us today. People we don’t even know have sent in gifts for the stalls. You really don’t realise how much people think of you until something like this happens.”

Various fundraising events have been held for the family including a non uniform day at Sandbrook Primary School, where one of today’s organisers, Michelle Flood, works as a teaching assistant.

Self-employed Mr Tanswell, added: “The support has been amazing. It has given us the opportunity to concentrate on Ruby instead of worrying about funds. Ruby has got our 100 per cent attention.

“I don’t know where we would have been without all this support.

“The money will help us out tremendously, when we are in America we will still have bills to pay over here .”

Speaking about the last few months Mr Tanswell said: “We don’t think about yesterday we think about tomorrow and that is what keeps us going.”

The event was organised by Lucy and Victoria Hallard and Michelle Flood. Richard Jupp the drummer from Bury band Elbow and Ben Ryan Davies also from Waterloo Road attended the fundraiser as well.

Lucy Hallard said: “We are raising money for the family, we haven’t set a target, if its £1,000, £3,000 or £500 it doesn’t matter - whatever we raise is better than nothing.”