Donate £10 to Lumos and have dinner with JKR

[fromorbit]

JKR has made a very generous offer on Twitter:

J.K. Rowling
https://x.com/jk_rowling/status/1929113511004664078

I mean this, by the way. Donate £10 to lumos, I'll draw three names out of a hat and we'll have dinner. It could be KFC, but the wonderful JamesChiavarini has just suggested his restaurant, so it might be there instead (travel and accommodation on me if you're not in London).

Offer stands! Applications close at midnight on Monday. A £10 donation means your name will go into the draw.

https://wearelumos.org/how-you-can-help/donate/

If your name’s chosen and you’re outside London (or the UK) I’ll pay for travel and accommodation.

Once donations have been verified with Lumos I’ll select three donors’ names at random (can’t promise a literal hat, but who knows).

I’ll match the total sum donated to Lumos between first offer and midnight Monday.

And once my three fellow diners have been chosen, we’ll have a vote on whether we’re having KFC or going to Il Portico.

Additional offer from John Boyne:

John Boyne

£10 donated to Lumos. Whoever has the good fortune to win the raffle and have dinner with you, I'll donate £1,000 to the charity of his or her choosing.

This was inspired by JKR's ongoing twitter spat with Jolyon:

I've never sought to auction dinner with myself at a Michelin-starred restaurant with ‘a selection of wines from [my] own cellar’ as you have, Jolyon, but if anyone wants to bung Lumos £10, I'll draw a name out of a hat and we'll split a KFC bargain bucket.

I’ll share your bargain bucket, Boiled. Or even better, get one each!

One each and some wings, and sweetcorn, and gravy, and coleslaw....

Now I really fancy a KFC!

Now you’re talking.

Me too!

Mmmm...KFC
Who wants to meet JKR when you can have KFC

<sobs quietly>

no luck here either - however, I am deeply concerned for the mental health wellbeing of coleoptera and in particular the need to consume buckets of KFC on their own...

perhaps all those who entered, but were unsuccessful should be put together in groups of 6 to share a KFC in honour of JKR (and beetles). It could be done regionally to avoid wings getting tired travelling there...

In fact we could set up an International Day celebrating truth, reason, logic, perseverance and humour - perhaps April 16th would be a good day?! A bit like a Burns supper - we could parade the KFC in and then read twitter quotes and comebacks... finally we would all light a cigar / pour a glass of wine and together say: I love it when a plan comes together (backdrops of tropical islands provided for social media photo opportunities...)

I like your thinking @akkakk especially as eating an entire bucket by myself, whilst definitely doable, is best not attempted in the first place!

Amazing

No joy here, but glad to see quarter of a million going to such a brilliant cause!

Holy moly, one quarter of a million! Fantastic.

Brilliant news!

That’s amazing. Glad to have been a tiny tiny part in it.

Wowsers!

I've just had an email from The Lumos Foundation. My heart skipped a beat but it is advising that a refund has been paid. I definitely did not ask for a refund and I've seen on X this has happened to multiple people. I can donate again but it is a shame if they are refunding without requests.

Is that all from £10 donations?

That must mean squillions of people wanted to eat KFC with JKR!

She matched, so £125,000 in ten pound donations is 12,500 people originally! I wonder how many entered the free version?

I might have known she helpled bump up the number!

@akkakk Like this? 😁
(Didn't get an email either, so congratulations to whoever won an evening at KFC! And 250,000£ ? Wow.)

Fantastic for such a good charity. I'm still envious of those who get to share the kfc. If it's anyone here, hopefully they can post a redacted as appropriate summary. I would get vicarious pleasure.

I was thinking perhaps a little more sociable 😁

image seemed to vanish - so adding it here!

Living my best life!

Sorry - you ended up a bit suntanned - but I am guessing that a boiled beetle in the tropics might be exactly that!

"I was thinking perhaps a little more sociable 😁"

I couldn't get the AI to draw what I had in mind (my first try, and I originally wanted a London skyline with a sad dolphin in the Thames!). I wonder how @Boiledbeetle gets the AI to draw exactly what she wants!

I've no idea to be honest!

Occupational hazard that comes with the Boiled bit of Boiledbeetle!