Nathan Caton and Ria Lina star in comedy night for The Veterans Charity

Two comedians who have appeared on television’s Mock The Week will be starring in a show to raise money for a charity that supports armed services veterans who have fallen on hard times.
By Gay Bolton
Published 8th Jan 2021, 05:30 GMT
Updated 9th Jan 2021, 11:20 GMT
Nathan Caton.Nathan Caton.
Nathan Caton.

Nathan Caton and Ria Lina are among the entertainers in a virtual comedy night which will be streamed online on Wednesday January 13 at 8.30pm.The show will be available on Zoom for viewers to watch in the comfort of their own home. Tickets, costing £15 with all proceeds going to the Veterans Charity, are available from www.designmynight.com website.Nathan Caton’s TV credits on BBC 3 include Russell Howard’s Good News, Eurogeddon, Little Miss Joycelyn and Most Annoying People. For Comedy Central, he has hosted his own programme The Nathan Caton Show as well as The Comedy Store and World’s Stand Up.Multi award-winning Ria Lina is the only Filipina female comedian in British stand-up. Her awards include Best Comedy Show at the Greater Manchester Fringe and she was a finalist in Amused Moose Comedy Awards at the Edinburgh Fringe.Ria wrote and acted in the ITV show Meet The Blogs and wrote and presented a Channel 4 documentary on the truth behind the myths that surround oriental women in Britain. The virtual comedy show will be compered by American stand-up Robyn Perkins who won Australia’s Sydney Fringe Comedy Award 2019 and was a weekly winner of the comedy award at the Perth FRINGE WORLD 2020.This night of fundraising for The Veterans Charity has been facilitated by Richard Mearns who has united the charity with south London’s comedy club Laugh Train Home.Richard, 39, is an ambassador for the charity which has helped him deal with the PTSD he was diagnosed with in 2009 after being dispatched to Iraq as a combat medical technician during the invasion.In his online blog, Richard wrote: “I have seen more dead bodies in various states than I would want anyone to see, from the smallest baby to the most indescribable.”

Mental health training company Thoughtify is sponsoring the online comedy show on Wednesday.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The Veterans Charity has seen a demand for its services increase during the pandemic. In 2019 the charity supported 483 cases; last year the number of cases increased to 839, with the charity supporting more than 2,000 people who have needed immediate support over the past four years.But with more than six months without public fundraising opportunities, the charity is reliant on money-spinning events like the virtual comedy night to help continue its valuable work.The Veterans Charity supplies food shopping, clothing, kitchenware and appliances and mobile smartphones. The charity says that £25 will buy a pizza delivery for a family, £85 will buy a smartphone to enable a veteran to maintain communication with friends while £125 would provide a comprehensive shopping delivery complete with food, toiletries and pet food to sustain a family in need.For more details about the cause and to help visit veteranscharity.org.uk website.

READ THIS: Derby’s new museum is seeking staff.