Captain Tom Moore scores number one chart hit with NHS charity single

19 April 2020, 19:01

Captain Tom Moore has topped the Official Big Top 40 with his heartwarming rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone with Michael Ball.

The 99-year-old war hero went straight to number one on The Official Big Top 40 chart on Sunday with the charity single, which is raising money for the NHS. It also features the NHS Voices of Care Choir.

Captain Tom has captured the heart of the nation with his extraordinary fundraising, raising over £26 million for NHS Charities Together to date.

Dame Vera Lynn and Katherine Jenkins’ duet of We’ll Meet Again, which is also raising money for the NHS is also a brand-new entry in tonight’s chart, going in at number 3.

Reacting to the news, his daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore said: "Oh my! Can anything else happen to us, do you think?! We are working our little socks off as you can imagine, we are fully Team Tom!

“Thank you for supporting us all and thank you to the British public, we really appreciate it.”

The Second World War veteran initially aimed to raise £1,000 and walk 100 lengths of his Bedfordshire garden before turning 100 on April 30.

But more than a million donors have contributed to his JustGiving page, which raises money for NHS Charities Together.

Captain Tom's challenge has captured the hearts of the nation, and he has been personally thanked by the Duke of Cambridge.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said he is looking at ways to recognise his "heroic efforts".

Ms Ingram-Moore said her father “laughs out loud” when he hears talk of a knighthood but admits “there’s a certain ring to sir tom moore though…”

Captain Tom’s 16 year-old grandson Benji described how his grandfather is reacting to his new-found fame: “He’s as true a Yorkshireman as you’re going to get, he takes everything in his stride.

Captain Tom Moore on his fundraising for the NHS

"He won’t brag about it at all, he’s probably one of the most humble men you’ll ever meet in your life. But I think quietly he’s really loving it.”

Ms Ingram-Moore added: “He’s the A-list celebrity, we’re merely the sidekicks!”

After Captain Tom’s duet with Michael Ball knocked The Weeknd’s ‘Blinding Lights’ off the top spot on The Official Big Top 40 and beat the likes of Dua Lipa, Drake and Harry Styles to this week’s no.1 spot, Ms Ingram-Moore told The Official Big Top 40’s Will Manning about his taste in music: “He loves a bit of country and western, he loves a bit of André Rieu, he loves a bit of big band, he loves World War II veteran songs, but he has always loved Michael Ball, so he’s in very good company.”

Speaking last week after Captain Tom completed 100 laps of his garden, his proud daughter said when they started out they were only aiming to make a few thousand pounds.

"We realised after a couple of days, we started to dream about £5,000," she said they thought if they did "super well" they might be able to make £5,000 by the end of the month.

Captain Tom was also shown a pre-recorded message from William, in which he praised the veteran's achievement as "incredible" and "amazing".

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In the video, William said: "What I love also is that he's a 99-year-old war vet, he's been around a long time, knows everything and it's wonderful that everyone has been inspired by his story and his determination.

"I think he's a one-man fundraising machine. God knows what the final total will be but good on him, I hope he keeps going."

A Spitfire flypast is reportedly being planned to mark Captain Tom's birthday, with a team of aircraft restorers looking to run an iconic WW2 plane over his home.

According to the Daily Telegraph, Alex Monk, 21, of the Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar in south-east London, said the flypast would salute Captain Moore's fundraising efforts.

He told the paper: "It will be a bit of a morale-booster for us all, really, to see a Spitfire in the sky. It's been the symbol of freedom in the past and quite an icon for Tom.

"Tom, more than anyone, knows what a Spitfire means, and to hear and see a Spitfire in the air for himself will be a nice experience for him."

Originally from Keighley in West Yorkshire, Captain Moore trained as a civil engineer before enlisting in the Army for the Second World War, rising to captain and serving in India and Burma.