Who would imagine these famous faces and voices from Across the Pond would collaborate to read arguably the most famous American poem of all time?
Here they are, reciting “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” written exactly 200 years ago (1823!) by New Yorker Clement Clarke Moore. (You can see the house where the wrote it on 23rd Street in Chelsea. It’s marked by a plaque.)
Watch. Enjoy. And Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!
The Daily Mail described this when it debuted three years ago:
The royals will read from the classic Christmas tale to raise awareness about the Actors’ Benevolent Fund (ABF) which has received more requests for help this year than ever before.
Tom Hardy, Dame Maggie Smith, Joanna Lumley, and Sex Education star Ncuti Gatwa , as well as the ABF’s president Dame Penelope Keith, also read extracts in the video.
Charles is the ABF’s patron and came up with the idea of gathering a group of actors for the reading after being approached by the charity to help following Covid-19’s major impact on the acting profession.
The prince and his wife recorded the poem at their London home Clarence House, and were joined by some of the actors including Lumley, Hardy and Gatwa who read their lines under Covid-19 regulations over the past few weeks.
The full video will be posted on Clarence House’s social media channels on Christmas Eve.
The ABF supports actors, actresses and stage managers who are unable to work due to illness, injury or old age and those experiencing financial hardship.
