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20 Mar 2026

Idris Elba and Alison Hammond among stars appearing in Comic Relief TV sketches

Idris Elba and Alison Hammond among stars appearing in Comic Relief TV sketches

Luther star Sir Idris Elba, TV presenter Alison Hammond and comedian Katherine Ryan are among the celebrities who will take part in sketches for a charity TV event.

The stars will appear during BBC’s Red Nose Day appeal show, Comic Relief: Funny For Money on Friday, which will feature a number of live performances, sketches and celebrity cameos.

The night will be hosted by Davina McCall, who will be joined by Ryan along with comedians Nick Mohammed, Joel Dommett and Catherine Tate.

One of the sketches, titled The Bank Job, stars Sir Idris alongside a gang of celebrities including TV presenters Hammond and Dermot O’Leary along with comedian Chris McCausland as they attempt a heist to raise money for Comic Relief.

The evening will also see a number of actors, comedians and celebrities portray the recent series four cast of hit BBC reality gameshow The Traitors.

Titled The Traitors: The Movie – The Sequel, the sketch features Pushing Daisies actress Anna Friel who will play presenter Claudia Winkleman with series winners, Rachel and Stephen, played by reality TV star Vicky Pattison and comedian Iain Stirling respectively.

Singer Fleur East will also join the roundtable along with former Emmerdale star Lewis Cope and Gavin and Stacey actress Alison Steadman.

Withering Heights, a parody of the recently released Emerald Fennell film adaptation of Wuthering Heights, will also air during the appeal show, revealing the “audition tapes” of comedians Ryan and Jon Richardson for the roles of Cathy and Heathcliff.

The evening will also see an Amandaland-inspired sketch which follows Amanda, played by Lucy Punch, and Anne, played by Philippa Dunne as they arrive for a special interview with BBC Radio 2’s Sara Cox.

Chaos ensues as they unexpectedly bump into some of TV’s most beloved Amandas including presenter Amanda Holden, former Coronation Street actress Amanda Barrie, and the Traitors series four star Amanda Collier.

A series of appeal films, including one fronted by Welsh actor Michael Sheen, will be played during the show, reminding viewers of the purpose of Red Nose Day and how donations help support people in the UK and beyond.

Comic Relief: Funny For Money will air live on BBC iPlayer and BBC One from 7pm on Friday, and for the first time will also be livestreamed on the official BBC YouTube channel.

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