Banbury Quarantine Collective raises £5,000 for NHS at the Horton

The Banbury Quarantine Collective, a group of Banbury musicians who came together to raise money for the NHS

A group of Banbury musicians did not let their physical separation get in the way of their creativity and desire to play during the coronavirus lockdown.

They came 'together' under the banner of 'The Banbury Quarantine Collective' to create a stunning performance of the classic Beatles track “With a little help from my friends” to raise funds for the NHS in North Oxfordshire.

More than 30 musicians were involved in creating the track, chosen for its positive and pertinent message in these tough times.

The fundraising campaign was launched in April 21 through a GoFundMe crowdfunding web page.

The video has since raised over £4500 through a GoFundMe page and has to date, been viewed more than 17,000 times.

In July, having been forced to cancel the local music festival, Bodfest, the organisers decided to produce a 'Virtual Bodfest' which would support the Collective’s fundraising efforts. With their help and generous donation, the fund has managed a final total of £5,000.

Organiser Tom Bodfish recently presented the £5,000 cheque to the Horton staff.

Tom Bodfish, organiser of the Banbury Quarantine Collective, recently presented a £5,000 cheque to the Horton staff.

Tom, who is also a local musician and SKAlectrics member, said: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the musicians who took part in this project, and of course to the generosity of the local Banbury people who donated to the cause. A special thanks to the Bodfest committee in Bodicote, whose generous donation got us up to the £5,000 mark.

"This was our small way to say thank you to our local NHS workers for the incredible work they do."

Those involved in the project include members of the following local bands: The SKAlectrics, The 2 Tone All Skas, The Duckworths, Neva Mynd, Uninvited, Sledgehammer, Dirty Deeds, The Meanies, plus the following local musicians; Jim Breslin and Eilidh Forster, Stuart Layzell and Stevie Cooper, Selena Evangeline, Jason Page and Valerie Vet, Leigh Chambers, Belinda Webb, Andi Goodman and Steve Anker.

Copies of the song are not on sale, but the video is available to view on YouTube.

The track can be viewed at the following link: https://youtu.be/oDXI6Lg2V_c

Tom added: "The unique thing about it is the number of local musicians on it. I don't remember a time when all the Banbury musicians came together on one track.

"There's some real talent in the town, and everybody has just embraced it. It's definitely been a real communal effort."