Football fans have the chance to win a football shirt signed by Manchester City and England star Joe Hart after the Shrewsbury-born hero donated it to raise £3,000 for a cancer charity in a raffle being staged by the town’s Market Hall.
The former Shrewsbury Town goalkeeper has given the shirt as the first prize in the Market Hall’s 50th Anniversary Raffle which is raising money for the Lingen Davies Cancer Fund.
Three thousand raffle tickets have gone on sale in the Market Hall priced at £1 each.
The raffle is part of the Market Hall’s 50th anniversary celebrations marking half a century since the prominent town centre building, which includes the town’s 240ft clock tower, an indoor market, a street level shopping complex and now Shewsbury’s first university hall of residence, was officially opened in September 1965.
The donation of the shirt was arranged through the player’s mum Louise, who is a big fan of the market.
The shirt has been framed courtesy of framing company Framewerk, based in the market. The second prize is a 50th anniversary cake decorated by cake decoration and sugarcraft specialist The Icing Tip and the third prize is a hamper of artisan foods from the award-winning market.
“We really want to thank Louise and Joe for helping our campaign to raise thousands of pounds for a vital local charity and get our 50th celebrations off to a great start,” said market facilities manager Kate Gittins.
“We’re hoping the public will really get behind this and help us to hit the target of £3,000 by the middle of September.”
Tickets are available from most stallholders. The raffle will be drawn on September 16 when a celebration will mark the exact anniversary of the Market Hall’s official grand opening 50 years ago.
Costing £1 million to build and designed by David du Roi Aberdeen, who famously designed Congress House, the TUC headquarters, in London, the Market Hall was hailed “the most modern building in Shropshire” when it opened.
It replaced a fondly remembered Victorian market hall that was considered unhygenic, crumbling and no longer fit for purpose.
Various art and digital exhibitions will run from September 7 to 28 commemorating the history of the building, its impact and the people and stories connected with it. The local historian David Trumper will present a talk on the building and the impact it had on the town at The Bear Steps Gallery, in St Alkmunds Square, at 8pm on Thursday September 17.
Today’s general market houses a mix of cosmopolitan cafes, stalls selling fresh produce and artisan foods, arts, crafts, antiques and the Shropshire Visual Art Network Gallery. The market is jointly run by Shropshire Council and Shrewsbury Town Council.
Shrewsbury Market Hall is open Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursday mornings, Fridays and Saturdays.
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Pic shows proud Manchester City fan William Cornall, aged 6, with the signed Joe Hart shirt that will be framed for the Market Hall Anniversary Raffle’s first prize.