Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have made a generous donation to Royal Bolton Hospital in honour of a Wrexham player’s “miracle” baby boy.
Wrexham AFC midfielder, James Jones, and his partner, Chloe, are currently in the process of raising thousands of pounds for Royal Bolton Hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), alongside a number of other charitable organisations, in a bid to say a worthy thank you to the neonatal nurses who provided life-saving care for their little boy, Jude.
James and Chloe set up the GoFundMe page after Jude was born 15 weeks prematurely back in November 2022, and went on to spend 122 days in hospital.
Jude was born at Wrexham Maelor Hospital, and weighed just 1lb 4oz when he came into the world.
Shortly after the birth, Chloe experienced pre-eclampsia – which is a condition causing high blood pressure – as well as the life-threatening pregnancy condition known as Hemolysis, Elevated Liver enzymes and Low Platelets (HELLP) syndrome, which led to her having two seizures and multiple organ failure.
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Jude was born weighing just 1lb 4oz, but he is now “absolutely thriving” / Credit: Bolton NHS | James & Chloe Jones (via Instagram)
Following this series of complications, Jude was so poorly that he needed a transfer to Bolton‘s NICU within just hours of being born.
After spending countless days “praying” their little boy would survive, and on several occasions even believing that he wouldn’t, one-year-old Jude is now beating all the odds, smashing every milestone, and said to be “absolutely thriving”.
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Chloe and James have continuously thanked all of the doctors, nurses, and midwives for the care the family received throughout Jude’s journey, but as the couple felt that words couldn’t really do their gratitude justice, they decided to set up a dedicated fundraiser to raise money for the intensive care units at both Wrexham Maelor and Royal Bolton Hospital (adult and neonatal), as well as neonatal family support charity, Spoons.
With a target of £20,000 set, donations to the fundraiser have been flooding in from far and wide since it was set up.
But no donation has been more generous than that from Wrexham AFC’s famous co-owners, actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, who have pledged a whopping £10,000 to the very-worthy causes.
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“We cannot thank the nurses, doctors and consultants enough for saving me and Jude,” Chloe commented as the fundraiser passed the £10,000 mark.
“The work they do day in, day out is amazing. There really are no words for how much it means to us.
“Jude is our whole world. He is beating all odds and is absolutely thriving. He is smashing every milestone and is the happiest little boy. Jude has chronic lung disease and an adrenal insufficiency as a result of his extreme prematurity and needing courses of steroids whilst in hospital [but] despite his difficult start, he is dealing with everything incredibly well.
Wrexham AFC co-owners, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, have donated £10,000 to the family’s GoFundMe / Credit: Chloe Jones (via Instagram) | Patrick McElhenney / FX
“We are so proud of him for being so strong and brave through absolutely everything he’s had to endure.
“It’s an honour to be his parents, and we love every second of it.”
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Speaking on the success of the fundraiser – which has now clocked-up more than £17,000 and counting – Cath Bainbridge, who is the Matron for Neonatal Services at Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, said: “The family overcame so much during their stay with us at Royal Bolton Hospital and it’s wonderful to learn that Jude is doing so well.
“We’re really touched that Chloe and James have chosen to raise money for our unit, and their funds will go such a long way in helping so many families in Bolton and beyond.”
FA confirm date and kick-off time for 2024 Manchester derby Community Shield
Danny Jones
The FA has finally confirmed the date and scheduled kick-off time for the 2024 Community Shield between Manchester United and Manchester City.
It was only last month that we saw the second-ever Manchester derby FA Cup final in history play out and now we’ll see the two teams return to the capital in just over a month and a half for another clash.
Revealing the Community Shield details on Wednesday, this year’s game will take place at 3pm on Saturday, 10 August.
Best getting booking them train tickets, Manc.
This year’s Community Shield kick-off time will be identical to the last two FA Cups. (Credit: Ratchet8865 via Wikimedia Commons)
With Man City having won a record fourth Premier League in a row and Man United getting one over on the Blues against the odds in last season’s FA Cup final, the neighbours will take each other on for just the third time in the history of the Community Shield – United having prevailed in both of the previous.
The Red Devils have won the title a total of 17 times, while the Cityzens have lifted the pre-season trophy just six times.
Given the nature of the rivalry, the kick-off time comes as little surprise, with 3pm having been chosen for the start of the last two Manchester derbies at Wembley to aid with travel and crowd control.
Nevertheless, an increased police presence will once again be expected in London.
While featuring in the Community Shield has been a regular occurrence for City over the past few years, they have only won two under Pep Guardiola. Meanwhile, this will be Erik ten Hag’s first experience of the fixture and United haven’t taken part in it since they last won the FA Cup in the 2016/17 season.
The match will be televised live on ITV 1, ITVX, STV and STV Player, with comprehensive radio coverage from BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Radio Manchester, BBC World Service, TalkSPORT and TalkSPORT International.
Although the allocations and further ticket information remain unclear, the FA said they will announce all of the important details “at the earliest opportunity”.
Häagen-Dazs is handing out FREE ice cream in Manchester this weekend
Emily Sergeant
Fancy a summery sweet treat? Häagen-Dazs will he handing out free ice cream in Manchester this weekend.
Ahead of what is set to be a busy season of sport, with events such as Wimbledon, the Olympics, and of course, UEFA Euro 2024 – which has already kicked off, and is now well underway – all in the calendar over the next couple of months, Häagen-Dazs has announced it’s heading out on tour for the summer to bring a bit of “alternative entertainment” to the UK’s biggest cities.
And what better way to kick things off than right here in Manchester?
Ice cream lovers who “aren’t too fussed by the footy” will be able to make the most of what the company is calling a “sanctuary of indulgence” down at Spinningfields Square, in the heart of the city centre, this weekend.
Häagen-Dazs is handing out free ice cream in Manchester this weekend / Credit: Häagen-Dazs UK (via Instagram)
All sounding set to be one of the sweetest pop-ups the city’s seen in a while, there’ll be deck chairs to lounge on, a disco van, a bunch of live performances, seasonal lawn games for all the family to get stuck into, and of course, some delicious ice cream to cool you down on what’s been a stunning week of sunshine for Greater Manchester.
With Englandhopefully set to play their first match in the Round of 16 at the Euros this weekend, anyone keen to escape the sports frenzy can nip to Spinningfields this Saturday (29 June) from 4-5pm for a free scoop of ice cream instead.
The ice cream brands disco van will be popping up in Spinningfields / Credit: Supplied
Belgian Chocolate, Salted Caramel, and Strawberry Cheesecake will be just some of the indulgent Häagen-Dazs flavours on offer.
When it comes to the entertainment on the day, you can expect to see Britain’s Got Talent’s musical comedy finalist, the hilarious Micky P Kerr, take to the stage, as well as enjoy a DJ set from local artist, DJ Fastlove, on the rooftop of the disco ice cream van.
Emily Sergeant -
4th June 2024 
