More than €150,000 donated to Alone in wake of Late Late appearance

Alone, a charity supporting older people, has raised over €150,000 from public donations following an appeal on RTÉ1's Late Late Show on Friday.

Sean Moynihan, Alone chief executive, appeared on the RTÉ show along with Dublin singer Gavin James, who performed a cover of Somewhere Over the Rainbow as part of a fundraising appeal.

The charity has seen a significant increase in calls from elderly people during the coronavirus crisis. Those aged 70 and over have been advised to “cocoon” in their homes to protect the vulnerable cohort from the virus.

Alone has expanded its services during the pandemic, and is running a Covid-19 helpline for older people from 8am to 8pm, seven days a week.

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In a statement on Saturday, Mr Moynihan said the charity had been “overwhelmed by the astonishing level of support we have received from every corner of the country over the last few days”.

The amount of public donations during the health crisis had been “unprecedented,” he said.

“We cannot express our gratitude to the Irish people for their amazing generosity during these difficult times,” he said.

The Late Late Show was hosted by Miriam O’Callaghan, following regular presenter’s Ryan Tubridy’s coronavirus diagnosis, but he is expected to return to the host’s chair next Friday.