A Sure initiative for Comic Relief has helped to raise ?7,500 for the charity.

Sure linked up with the organisers of Red Nose Day to enable Isle of Man residents to donate money to the cause via text message from last Friday, 13th March. The lines will remain open for donations to be made until the end of this month.

Chief Executive of Sure in the Isle of Man, Simon Last-Sutton, said: ‘Previously, Isle of Man residents couldn’t support celebrities who were raising money for Comic Relief and urging people to text to a premium rate number to support them. We added two numbers so that local people could either make a ?5 donation by texting ‘YES’ or a ?1 donation to the part of the appeal focusing on the team of celebrities who climbed Mount Kilimanjaro by texting ‘CLIMB’.

‘We know how generous people are in the Isle of Man and that they would also want to take advantage of the opportunity to text their support to such a worthy cause. We were thrilled to be able to help people make their donation.’

Premium rate texting is not normally available to Isle of Man residents but Sure pledged to offer the service if demand was strong enough. This year’s Comic Relief event raised more than ever before for people in need in Africa and the UK, beating the previous record by more than ?17 million.