New year and new hope.

The Hospices of Hope opened a new fund-raising charity store in Tunbridge Wells yesterday.

Emily Firmin, who plays Emily in the Bagpuss TV programme, did the honours, accompanied by Bagpuss himself.

Bagpuss and Lizzie Mouse are the charity’s mascots.

The charity was founded in 1991, by Tunbridge Wells resident Graham Perolls.

After the fall of communism, Mr Perolls visited a state hospital in Romania and was shocked by the conditions – particularly the lack of any pain relief for patients with terminal cancer.

Since then, Hospices of Hope has grown to become the leading hospice care charity in South Eastern Europe, supporting thousands of terminally ill people across Albania, Romania, Serbia and Moldova.

The charity now has 17 shops across the country including branches in Maidstone, Tonbridge and Otford.

The creators of Bagpuss - Peter Firmin and Oliver Postgate - are patrons of the charity.

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