Copyright © 2015. No duplication is permitted without permission from Bob Larson Tennis.

The Aegon Championships helped to raise more than £250,000 for Children In Need on the Chris Evans Breakfast Show on BBC Radio 2 on Monday.

Each day this week, the Chris Evans Show will auction off a package of money-can’t-ordinarily-buy opportunities, and day one saw tennis feature on the auction for the first time.

As part of The Ultimate Tennis Package, Tournament Director Stephen Farrow, a studio guest, revealed that the eight highest bids would pick out names at the official Aegon Championships draw, play the Pudsey Pro-Am with stars of the tournament and receive gardening tips from The Queen’s Club’s Grounds Manager, Graham Kimpton. They would then receive a tour of the player lounge, pose with the trophy, enjoy Keith Prowse Roof Garden hospitality, before taking the best seats in the house to watch a day’s play. The winner of the Pudsey Pro-am would also conduct the coin toss for an opening day match on Centre Court at The Queen’s Club, and the two highest bidders would receive exclusive tennis tips from Andy Murray.

Also in the studio to help encourage bids were three-time Aegon Championships runner-up Tim Henman, the 1987 Wimbledon champion Pat Cash, and BBC presenter John Inverdale. Judy Murray joined the conversation as a telephone guest.

Henman and Cash are part of the Champions Tennis field at the Royal Albert Hall in December. The winning bidders will also get to play on the Royal Albert Hall court, enjoy a backstage tour, and ask John McEnroe a question on The Tennis Podcast. Inverdale and Judy Murray will host a dinner for ‘the eight’ at Theo Randall’s Michelin Star restaurant. They will then be given Wimbledon tickets and a tour of the commentary box,

The eight winning bids ranged between £20,000 and £35,000, adding up to a total of £250,215. The show’s ‘White Knight’ then matched the top bid to make a total of £285,000.

The Chris Evans Breakfast Show has a regular audience of 10 million listeners making it the most popular show of its type on radio or television in the country.

Copyright © 2015. No duplication is permitted without permission from Bob Larson Tennis.