The Friends of King Alfred Buses (FoKAB) group has received a donation of £500 from amateur theatre ensemble the Worthy Players. It comes as the bus preservation charity continues its rebound from a disastrous fire at a storage unit in December 2022.
Members of both FoKAB and the Worthy Players met in Winchester for presentation of the cheque. The Players were then given a ride on FoKAB’s 1929 Leyland Lion bus around the cathedral city.
The Worthy Players makes a charity donation each year and has a close connection to FoKAB. Richard Aldous is a member of both societies, and unfortunately saw a double-decker bus in his ownership destroyed in the storage unit fire alongside seven other historic coaches and buses. Mr Aldous had spent 15 years restoring the bus before that.
Worthy Players Chair Martin Pettigrew says that the theatre group is “proud to be able to support the Friends of King Alfred Buses” through its charity donation in 2024.
“Part of our tradition is to make charity donations from performance profits each year to local and other good causes nominated by members of the group,” he continues. “Other recent benefactors have been The Theatre Royal, Winchester Hospice, Winchester Youth Counselling, and the local women’s refuge.
“FoKAB is a fantastic group of volunteers whose numerous running days in Winchester are enjoyed by friends and families of all ages. Long may they continue.”
Both organisations celebrated milestone anniversaries in 2023. The Worthy Players marked its 50th birthday, while it was half a century since the last King Alfred bus made its journey in Winchester.
FoKAB Chair and former First Bus West of England Managing Director James Freeman has thanked the Worthy Players for the donation. He describes the gift as “a wonderful example of how two voluntary groups can work together.” Donation of the funds follows a successful pantomime season for the Players.
Adds Mr Freeman: “We never cease our fundraising efforts, so we thank the Worthy Players most sincerely for choosing us to benefit. £500 is a princely sum, and we plan to put the money towards the vital repair of the radiator of FoKAB’s very first bus, a 1959 Leyland Tiger Cub single-decker that was rescued way back in 1981.”
