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Katie Price, Snoop Dogg and John Cleese sending video messages through Cameo, Thrillz, CelebVM and Memmo

When the pandemic struck, many in the world of entertainment found their work dry up as theatres shut, live music was called off, public appearances scrapped and production on TV and film ground to a halt.

Which left many pondering how to help pay for that lavish lifestyle to which they had become accustomed.

Nasty Nick has a nice message for our readers

All of which may explain why the world of celebrity video messaging has become major business over the last year.

The concept is simple. Famous names sign up to one of a growing number of platforms, and for anything from a handful to several hundred pounds, they'll record a personalised video just for you which you can download and share with your friends to your heart's content.

Want John Cleese to wish you happy birthday? It's yours for £337. Always dreamed of former US political heavyweight Sarah Palin saying she'd vote for you? Well £186 will achieve it (assuming she agrees, of course). Want to get Richard Dreyfuss, star of Jaws, to say you're going to need a bigger boat? Through gritted teeth, no doubt, he'll do the honours for £750.

Katie Price will give you a shout out for £250, while Uri Geller will talk about bending spoons directly to you for a more reasonable £50. And if money's tight, well Lee 'Zammo from Grange Hill' Macdonald may sing a snatch of Just Say No for a mere 15 of your English pounds.

And there are plenty of famous stars from Kent making a few bob too.

Paul Chuckle, Chesney Hawkes and Kerry Katona can say Happy Birthday to your favourite people this lockdown

Faversham's Shaun 'Barry from EastEnders' Williamson is on there (£30); Bucks Fizz star Cheryl Baker, who lives in Tunbridge Wells, can record you a message for a similar sum (she recently admitted it was a rare form of income after the pandemic called off her touring plans); Benenden-raised comic Jo Brand will wax lyrical for £45; John 'Nasty Nick from EastEnders' Altman, who lived for many years in Herne Bay, will snarl at you in a threatening manner for £35 (you can see his special clip to the people of Kent, above); and if you fancy a matey message from ex-Liverpool and Spurs ace Neil 'Razor' Ruddock, the former Ashford schoolboy will do just that for £35.

And, while we're on sport, David Gower, the former England cricket captain who grew up in Kent, will probably praise your batting technique, if you ask him nicely, for a mere £50.

Not Kent related, but you can even ask former England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson to help you with your Football Manager formations for 50 quid.

For the biggest names the income is considerable. Especially when considering most videos don't last much longer than a minute. Bash a few out back-to-back while they're pondering when their agent will call again with a proper job and you can see how the sums add up.

Little wonder, then, that the number of websites and apps offering the service has ballooned recently. You may have heard of Cameo which has emerged as the big player in the US with its tentacles now stretching around the world.

Cricket legend David Gower can raise a glass in your honour. Picture: Thrillz.co.uk
Cricket legend David Gower can raise a glass in your honour. Picture: Thrillz.co.uk

Launched in 2017, it raised $50million (£36.3m) in investment just two years later to propel it forward.

And there's no little competition.

If you're looking for that special message complete with the required stardust then there's the likes of British-based CelebVM - which lays claim to giving birth to the concept - Thrillz and Swedish outfit Memmo to name but a few.

Explains Thrillz founder Anjan Luthra: "It was built to monetise the down time of the celebrities. We never assumed they would all be sitting at home doing this full-time, but for many that's what the pandemic has done.

"But the idea was we'd say to the celebrities 'hey, you're on your way to the studio, in a cab, you're on a flight, you've come home after a day of recording, you sit on your couch you open your phone, you click three buttons and do the videos'.

Watch people scream, cry and giggle at their messages

"I think on a time versus effort basis, this is one of the most lucrative ways for celebrities to earn money and they've seen that. I think the pandemic has accelerated their acceptance and their willingness to use the platform going forward.

"People are making between £40-50,000 since we started. It's very lucrative. Not everyone's making that, but a small cohort are. The rest are making several thousand."

Yes, that's £50,000. More impressive given Thrillz only started up last June. Easy money, some would say for the celeb with a little time on their hands.

And that's actually quite modest compared to many others.

When Carole Baskin, one of the stars of Netflix's global hit Tiger King, signed up to Cameo she apparently broke its previous records and pocketed £220,000 in her first month alone.

Want Katie Price to say something special? Picture: Thrillz.co.uk
Want Katie Price to say something special? Picture: Thrillz.co.uk

Cameo's CEO Steven Galanis recently admitted the pandemic had accelerated demand. He explained: "We weren't sure what was going to happen when the lockdowns came in.

"Then a lot of talent who had told us they didn't have time to join the platform weren't making any money. They had all the time in the world and were really missing their fans, so they started turning to Cameo in droves."

Angus Lancaster, founder of CelebVM is the man who lays claim to having the original idea almost 10 years ago.

While working for his Water Walkerz company - which provides those big bubble things (Zorb balls) you climb in to at water parks - he worked alongside a number of famous faces, among them One Direction, and saw the potential of giving fans direct access to their heroes, for a price.

After waiting patiently outside his local theatre in Bristol after a pantomime, he persuaded the comedian Andy Ford to be his first client, selling the chance of a personalised message from the star of the show to theatre-goers as they came out after the show. It proved a hit.

Angus Lancaster, boss of CelebVM and the man who came up with the idea which has created a phenomenon
Angus Lancaster, boss of CelebVM and the man who came up with the idea which has created a phenomenon

He then spent a year working on his plans and in 2013 launched CelebVM.

Now his site offers hundreds of celebrities - predominantly British - and the money is rolling in.

"When I first started this I thought, in theory, the celebrities could make thousands of pounds in a couple of hours. Now that is reality.

"Some have signed up in the last six months and they've earned £80,000.

"If they keep on getting too many requests they can put their prices up a £5-10 to reduce the numbers.

Have the one and only, ahem, Chesney Hawkes say hello just for you. Picture: Thrillz.co.uk (44275141)
Have the one and only, ahem, Chesney Hawkes say hello just for you. Picture: Thrillz.co.uk (44275141)

"But since the lockdown, celebrities have been inviting their famous friends to join up and it it all snowballs.

"We've had a 1,000% increase in revenue and recorded videos over the last 12 months.

"It started going up in March when the first lockdown came in and it's not dipping at all.

“One guy has only been on it two months and he's done 500 videos - others maybe 50-60 videos despite being on it for years.”

For some of the biggest names, demand even outweighs what they can do.

From me to you etc etc...a Chuckle Brother message could be yours. Picture: Thrillz.co.uk
From me to you etc etc...a Chuckle Brother message could be yours. Picture: Thrillz.co.uk

Mary Poppins and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang star Dick van Dyke was so deluged with requests when he signed up to Cameo - and bear in mind the old chap is now 95 - he's had to put his messages on pause. Which is quite something as he was earning north of £800 for each one.

While rapper Snoop Dogg, who judging by his Just Eat ads doesn't mind selling out Brand Snoop for a few quid, was also hugely popular despite his £700 price tag.

Of course, there are plenty of lesser celebs on these sites. And I mean plenty.

You can get messages from the ego-crazed estate agents from Netflix's Selling Sunset (Mary Fitzgerald can make your day for a mere £100), or a shout-out from Paul Chuckle - the surviving Chuckle Brother - for a slightly more bank balance friendly £35. Mr Motivator can, well, motivate you for £40; Debbie McGee (widow of magician Paul Daniels) can cast a spell over you for £30, or if the dream has always been for T'Pau's Carol Decker to hold some, ahem, china in her hand just for you (and by that I mean a cup of tea), then £45 will ensure your bucket list wish is achieved.

Explains Thrillz's Anjan Luthra: "For us it's important to have a great range of celebrities - including those who aren't necessarily super famous but have very loyal followings online. So anyone who has a large following and who is loved by people will do well.”

Basil Brush will laugh at your jokes in his customary style...if you pay him, of course
Basil Brush will laugh at your jokes in his customary style...if you pay him, of course

And if you're really after some odd ones, then you can even book 'Jesus Christ' ('the only verified Son of God on the internet is on Thrillz' runs the sales pitch). He'll charge you £20 a pop - although, as you would expect from our Lord and Saviour, all the cash goes to charity. Just don’t expect any miracles. Boom boom.

Talking of which, Basil Brush – a creation of the late Peter Firmin at his farmhouse studios in Blean, near Canterbury - is on there too with his quick foxy wit setting you back £45.

Unsurprisingly, the companies giving you the opportunity to get the messages are making hay. The majority of them cream off 25% of every transaction and many are expanding to offer one-on-one time via video conferencing and even live performances for larger audiences.

CelebVM pays its famous faces up to 85% of each video they make and pays them the minute they press send for the video to go to the punter - a perk it believes helps them keep attracting top talent.

So should you be thinking of getting The Hoff (that's David Hasselhoff to the uninitiated) to propose to your (hopefully) future spouse (which you'll only get a little change from £375 for) or former World Snooker champ Dennis Taylor to talk cue action (a more reasonable £40), just what can you expect for your money?

Sooty can provide you with a personalised (whispered) message. Picture: Thrillz.co.uk
Sooty can provide you with a personalised (whispered) message. Picture: Thrillz.co.uk

The Thrillz founder explains: "We offer a shout out package which is a verbal message of about a minute long, while a performance package, which costs a little more, allows a performer to sing or play an instrument of do a comedy sketch - so a much more elaborate, longer video which can be a couple of minutes long and be of the main skill they are known for.

"Musicians are very popular for that. So, with someone like Mya, you can get a personalised song from a Grammy Award winning performer."

CelebVM’s Angus Lancaster says the average length of the clip recorded is 60 seconds but the celebrity can take as long as he or she wants – some even recording messages of up to 10 minutes long.

As for the prices charged? Well, the star can dictate the price, but generally they're led by those behind the platform who will have a pretty fair idea of just what the demand will be.

The big question is once the lockdown measures ease globally, and the stars remember they need to earn a ‘proper’ living once again, will their desire to keep recording messages dry up?

'Top performers are earning up to £10,000 a month...'

"Top performers are earning up to £10,000 a month," explains Rob Petts, UK MD of Swedish outfit Memmo, "so it's a great opportunity for them to generate an additional revenue stream, particularly during the pandemic when traditional methods of work have gone on pause.

"It gives them connections to their fans, doesn't take up a lot of their time, and they can do it anywhere, essentially.

"I do believe this is something which would still have done well, even if the pandemic hadn't happened. It's an opportunity which is very accessible, it's easy for both the talent and the fans."

So there you are. Wondering what to get that special someone in your life while we're still all locked down (while keeping your hero in Champagne)? Then look no further...

For more quirky and unusual stories, click here

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