Vera author Ann Cleeves is offering the chance to meet her for tea in a bid to raise funds for those affected by the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.
Book Aid for Ukraine was launched today and is raising money for those affected by the Russian invasion, and tea with Ann is one of more than 200 literary-themed prizes on offer, along with lots from Dave Grohl, Joe Wicks and Lenny Henry.
Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, it has been reported that so far the UK public has raised £100m for Ukraine in just four days - roughly £1m an hour.
Read more: World Book Day 'Little Vera' catches the attention of Ann Cleeves and Brenda Blethyn
At the time of writing, Book Aid for Ukraine (which is separate from charity Book Aid) has raised more than £12,000 in a matter of hours, with lots still being added to the site.
Ann Cleeves, who was appointed an OBE for her services to libraries and reading in the New Year Honours List, said: "Tea by the sea and lots of Vera chat will be lovely. So many of the shows were filmed here, so I just thought it would be a nice idea to bring someone to Whitley Bay, give them tea, or if it's someone local they can pop over for a bit of a chat."
She continued: "We’re all wanting to help aren’t we? We’ve all seen those terrible photos. It just seems so unfair somebody walking into your country and taking it over. There doesn’t seem to be any sort of grey area in that, it’s just blatantly wrong. We need to support the people who are made refugees but also the people who are still fighting."
Ann isn't the only North East author involved in the Book Aid for Ukraine auction - there are also 10 signed copies of North East comic magazine Viz's 2022 annual The Copper's Torch available to bid on.
Hayley Steed, a literary agent, set up Book Aid for Ukraine and has praised what has been an 'amazing' response so far.
She said: "I'd been watching the news and felt powerless but wanted to do something. Around the time the pandemic was really bad, a colleague did something similar and raised £60,000 to get breathing equipment to India and when I saw how well that had done I thought something similar would work now."
Originally, Hayley had hoped that the auctions, which run from today until midnight on March 20, would raise five figures over two weeks - but they've reached in a matter of hours.
All proceeds will go to humanitarian charity British Ukrainian Aid, which supports people suffering from the war and humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.
Hayley continued: "It would be great to get £50,000 if we can, but as much as possible is the goal. We've got so many incredible things, sightseeing flights, hotel stays, Airbnbs, a bit of everything."
For those who want to give but get outbid on tea with Ann, here are several places in the North East where you can donate items for those who are fleeing Ukraine or have been internally displaced.
You can find more information and bid on any items you're interested in at Book Aid for Ukraine.
