North-east's Kilted Chef serves up £100,000 for cancer charity

Kilted Chef Craig Wilson — Craig and Lindsay Wilson. Picture by Scott Baxter.

A north-east chef has reached a major milestone with his fundraising efforts for a leading cancer charity.

Craig Wilson, who owns Eat on the Green in Udny, has been fundraising for good causes for the last 15 years.

On Hogmanay, he reached the £100,000 mark for Friends of Anchor.

Since 2014 he and his wife, Lindsay, have held an array of events to give the cancer charity a boost.

One of the biggest fundraisers was the Human Anchor Light event which was attended by Britain’s Got Talent sensation Susan Boyle.

Craig Wilson aka The Kilted Chef from Eat On The Green, Udny Green has raised more than £100,000 for Friends of Anchor. Picture by Darrell Benns.

Hundreds of people turned out at Udny Green Church to raise money for Friends of Anchor at the event in December 2017.

Craig also offered diners a voluntary donation scheme with people asked if they would like to add a £1 to their restaurant bill which was donated to the charity.

Craig, who is also known as the Kilted Chef, said he got involved with fundraising for cancer charities in 2006 after his mother Shelia was diagnosed with breast cancer.

He said: “We did a bit of fundraising for Clan and Maggie and we’ve raised about £250,000 for different cancer charities.

Craig has participated in a range of different events with Friends of Anchor.

He said: “We had an event with the Emmerdale guys and I did one where I cooked in every city in Scotland.

“We also added a pound to every bill for the last few years and every penny of that went to Friends of Anchor.

“We also had an event with Susan Boyle and we formed the human anchor of light outside the restaurant.

“I feel very lucky that the charity got behind all of our ideas. For me, the golden nugget for this is that every single penny goes to the Friends of Anchor.

“My wife Lindsay has also been an integral part of every charity event.”

Sarah-Jane Hogg, director of Friends of Anchor, said: “This is really amazing news and the perfect way to round off 2020 as its been a difficult year for charities and the hospitality sector.

“What I love about Craig and Lindsey is the way they get the community involved in fundraising. They are great at finding ways to do this.

“We are very grateful to them for finding ways to help Friends of Anchor and we are also very fortunate.”