A selfless dad-of-four from East Ayrshire has been nationally recognised after he raised a whopping £80,000 for charity during lockdown with his hit online series.
Andy Dunlop garnered five million views on his 'Staying Inn' Facebook hub which raised the phenomenal amount for good causes, including helping the Beatson Cancer Charity.
The 39-year-old events manager won £1,000 after he was anonymously nominated for the Specsavers UK Smile Maker.
Andy started making videos with his family from his home office after the Covid pandemic put a stop to the festivals he loves to organise.
Since March last year – alongside wife Jennifer – Andy arranged and hosted more than 400 events on The Stayin’ Inn; while juggling home renovations and looking after their four children – Ivy , 6, Travis, 4, Taylor, 3, and Piper, six months.
The Darvel family were hard at work putting on interactive quizzes, community awards nights, a virtual dating series called ‘From Zoom to Groom’ and a live pantomime.
Andy said: "It started with the, ‘I Love Clarkston Community Awards’, which was my first physical event to be cancelled due to lockdown so we had to move it online.
"To test out our livestream equipment, I hosted a pub quiz event on my personal page. It really cheered people up and we received great feedback so we made it a more formalised series – and The Stayin’ Inn was born.
"I am absolutely thrilled I have won, I was speechless if I’m honest. It means so much to me that people view me as a Smile Maker. We’ve built a really engaged online community with 1,600 active members and hosted a range of events to entertain the nation, and to be recognised for that with an award is really humbling."
As well as receiving the Smile Maker award, Andy won a one-to-one video call with celebrity father-and-son TV and radio stars and ITV Sunday Best presenters, Martin and Roman Kemp, as well as £1,000 and a glasses voucher to spend in his local Specsavers store.
Andy added: "Huge thanks to Martin and Roman who were so kind about the work I have done and they even recorded some quiz questions for me for future events.
"They really took the time to get to know me and my family and chat about the future of digital entertainment."
Musician and actor Martin added: "This year has been tough but people like Andy, who has been so generous in his commitment to others, make such a positive difference.
"We were thrilled to be able to virtually meet Andy, learn about his incredibly inspirational work and say thank you for his service to making people smile."
Capital Breakfast host and presenter Roman said: "It’s been fantastic being able to read all the stories of community heroes throughout the country. Seeing people coming together to give back to others in a time we need it most has been inspiring.
"Andy is a very deserving winner and my dad and I loved chatting with him about his incredible work for an online community. Hopefully we made him smile in return."
Susanne Akil, Specsavers Scotland chair, said: "The Specsavers Smile Maker competition has done a wonderful job of shining a light on those who have continued to make us smile when we have needed it most.
"I couldn’t be more thrilled that Andy has been crowned the winner for Scotland – he is a true community hero."
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