A TEENAGER has stars in her eyes after winning a top BBC award.
Christleton High School sixth former Hannah Jones has won the BBC Switch Live 2009 Teen Hero award for raising an amazing £48,000 for brain cancer charities whilst receiving treatment for a brain tumour herself.
Hannah didn’t know about the award until just a week before the Hammersmith Apollo ceremony as friend Luke Didsbury nominated her in secret.
She said: “It’s absolutely fantastic. I was speechless when I walked up to the stage.”
Luke, friend Katie Wild and sister Molly were all at the ceremony to watch Hannah receive the gong from X Factor winner Alexandra Burke.
Dad Steve said: “There were 4,000 young people in the audience and they drowned her out with cheers and applause as she walked up to get her award.”
Nominees for the award were invited from listeners to The Surgery on Radio 1 and readers of BBC’s on-line magazine Slink.
Surgery presenter Aled Haydn-Jones said: “We received nominations for so many inspirational and brave teenagers but Hannah really stuck out as someone who, despite facing a lot of challenges in her life, found a way of helping other people as well.”
Hannah raised cash for the Samantha Dixon Brain tumour Trust from clothes sales, cake sales and coffee mornings.
Other BBC Switch Live winners include Cheryl Cole and world champion diver Tom Daley.The ceremony will be broadcast on BBC One on Sunday November 15 at 3pm.
Hannah is encouraging people to sign the 10 Downing St petition for more research into brain tumours. To sign visit www.petitions.number10.gov.uk/Braintumours/.
