Captain Tom Moore's charity single tops iTunes Chart as campaign total passes £22 million

18 April 2020, 13:30

Captain Tom Moore’s charity single with Michael Ball has shot straight to the top of the iTunes Chart.

The heart-warming rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone, which also features the Voice of Care Choir, was released on Friday.

All proceeds will go to the war hero’s walk fund, which has so far raised almost £23 million for the NHS amid the coronavirus outbreak.

FOLLOW OUR LIVE UPDATES HERE

The single beat Dame Vera Lynn and Katherine Jenkins’ re-recording of We’ll Meet Again to the top spot.

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.

A Spitfire flypast is reportedly being planned to mark Captain Moore’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."

Captain Moore'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".

Speaking on Friday, Captain Moore said: "It really is absolutely enormous isn't it. That sum of money is very difficult to imagine but it's coming in so well."

His daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore previously told LBC News it was "outstanding" that her father had managed to raise so much money for the NHS.

When asked what she thought about a proposed national campaign to have her father knighted, Hannah said: "what an amazing recognition of him, if that is to be true."

"But if that's what people believe should happen, how fantastic for him."

She revealed to LBC News the family were getting more than 20,000 emails from around the world and they were working flat out to answer them all.

Captain Tom Moore on his fundraising for the NHS

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

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."

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.