Iconic sites nationwide will be turned yellow to promote the RNLI's Mayday campaign, which is raising money for vital kit for the charity's volunteer crews
Some of the UK’s most celebrated landmarks including the Blackpool Tower and the National Library of Wales will be going yellow this month, in support of the RNLI’s Mayday campaign.
Sites including castles, lighthouses, sculptures and iconic landmarks will turn yellow after dark in an effort to remind people to ‘do your bit, fund our kit’. All money raised through the Mayday campaign will help fund vital kit for RNLI lifeboat crews.
National Library in Wales goes yellow for the RNLI’S Mayday campaign
Andy Jupp, RNLI community fundraising manager for London says: “Yellow wellies, lifejackets, helmets – this iconic kit is essential for lifesaving and protecting our selfless volunteers who face extreme conditions while saving lives at sea. We’re asking the public to get creative and Go Yellow throughout the month of May to help us raise funds for their kit.”
The current list of confirmed sites that will be going yellow for the MAyday campaign includes:
- 30 April–3 May – National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth
- 30 April and 19 May – Dover Castle, Kent
- 1–13 May – Smeaton’s Tower Lighthouse, Plymouth
- 3 May – Criccieth Castle, Gwynedd
- 4–5 May – Blackpool Tower, Lancashire
- 11 May – Titan Crane, Clydebank
- The Kelpies, Falkirk
It costs £1,598 to provide one all-weather lifeboat crew member with all of the kit they need for the vital search and rescue work they do.
Yellow phonebox outside City Hall to kick start RNLI’S Mayday campaign
In London, an iconic red telephone box located along the River Thames outside City Hall has also been turned yellow to highlight the Mayday campaign. Passers-by who spot the yellow phone box can pick up the phone to hear real-life rescue stories. The experience aims to give the public an insight into what it really means to be a lifesaving volunteer responding to a call for help.
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The RNLI wants the public to come up with inventive ways to fundraise throughout the month of May, from cycling, swimming and baking to donning their brightest yellow at work or school.
In 2017 these crews launched 8,436 times, aiding 8,072 people. RNLI London lifeboat crews alone launched 697 times, aiding 273 people.
Smeaton Tower in Plymouth
Chris Walker, RNLI Helm on the Tower lifeboat explains: “We rely on our kit to keep us protected from the very cold temperatures we face on the river during rescues. Our kit is being upgraded this year, with the new kit being supplied by our strategic partner Helly Hansen. This great new kit will ensure we have maximum protection, keeping us warm and dry while we’re saving lives. The increased flexibility and lighter weight of the material allows us to don the kit really quickly, which is paramount for our response times – people can drown in a matter of moments in the Thames. We’re a charity and rely on the public to help us stay on the water, so we hope people will spend a moment this May Day to think about what else Mayday means and support us.”
For fundraising ideas, head to the RNLI Go Yellow page, and people can also show their support by joining the conversation online using the hashtag #MaydayEveryDay.