Norman's musical high for charity

Charity busker Normal Evans MBE has finished counting his 2005 donations…and is raring to go in 2006!

Normal, a familiar sight on Redcar High Street, says he raised around £8,000 last year for a host of good causes. And while bad weather and a few health problems have kept him at bay so far in 2006, he's determined to be back at his pitch before too long.

Last year, Norman's good causes included Pulmonary Hypertension, the Butterwick and Zoe's Place hospices, Daisy Chain, the region's Special Olympic team Macmillan Nurses, Redcar Lifeboat, British Lung Foundation and Cardiac Risk in the Young.

He says his two immediate targets for the coming year are £100 for the Macmillan Nurses and £1,000 for the region's annual trip to Lourdes.