Tennis-playing British comedian Tony Hawks is helping to raise money for a tennis charity at a special event in West Hampstead on July 2.
Hawks, a ranked county tennis player as a junior, has created the Tennis for Free charity in the UK to bring children of different backgrounds together, inspired by the Freddie Krivine Foundation, which has been teaching the sport to Jewish and Arab children in Israel for over 15 years.
The Foundation will be holding a fundraiser at the JW3 Community Centre on Sunday, July 2 at 7.30pm, when they will be screening the film ‘Playing the Moldovans at Tennis’.
The comedy was produced, written and directed by Hawks, after a somewhat bizarre wager he made after England’s footballers had beaten Moldova 4-0 at Wembley Stadium.
A regular guest on BBC Radio 4’s “I’m sorry I haven’t a clue”, Hawks will introduce his film and take questions afterwards.
Prior to the screening, from 3-6pm, professional Israeli coaches Mohamed Rashwan and Kamal Kiwan, both alumni of the Freddie Krivine tennis programmes, will be giving free lessons for children under the age of 10 on a Hampstead beach.
Taking place on JW3’s famous downsized replica of Tel Aviv’s endless sandy beaches, the coaches will be using mini-tennis kits, soft balls and small-sized racquets in the first event of its kind at the centre.
Jane Krivine said: “What better way to kick off Wimbledon than to celebrate that tennis is a sport for everyone and as with all sports we can use events like this to bring people together where previously there may have been a divide.
“My thanks go to Tony for his time and I can’t wait to see people having a fun-filled day of tennis and enjoy a very funny film.”
For further information email freddiekrivineoffice@gmail.com or phone Jane Krivine on 00972 547 405 047.
Tickets for the film screening are £30 each and to book online visit www.ticketsource.co.uk/freddie-krivine-foundation or to book by phone call 0333 666 3366. Additional costs apply.
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