Liverpool fundraiser aims to raise £30,000 for The Vivienne statue
'Bring The Vivienne Home' is being held at BOXPARK and is expected to gather more than a thousand attendees in support of the campaign
A fundraiser event in Liverpool this Friday aims to raise more than £30,000 to contribute toward a permanent statue of The Vivienne at the entrance to the city’s Pride Quarter.
The event, named Bring The Vivienne Home, will be held at BOXPARK Liverpool and is expected to gather more than a thousand attendees in support of the campaign.
Read more: National call opens for artists to honour the legacy of The Vivienne
This single night could raise over a quarter of the £120,000 goal required to commission the statue, with raffle tickets sold alongside entry.
The campaign is led by Cassie Williams, mother of James Lee Williams - who was known professionally as The Vivienne - and is managed by Proudly Said.
The statue is planned to be a permanent fixture within Liverpool’s Pride Quarter, serving as both a memorial to The Vivienne and an investment in the community, raising awareness about substance misuse.
The statue aims to provide the city's LGBTQ+ community with a place to gather and reflect, especially after losing venues and reduced footfall in recent years.
Cassie Williams, mother of James Lee Williams, said: “I’ll never forget standing in Liverpool in January 2025 right after James left us. We were still numb, and we came to a city that had already put itself in green for him. Thousands of people came out in the cold for my son, people who loved him, who admired his work and even those who’d never met him, and Liverpool just did it, because that was James to them.
“That was the night I knew. He came here at sixteen with nothing and this city made him who he was, so this is where he belongs, and where he can carry on giving back to the place that gave him everything. I’d love people to come to BOXPARK on Friday and be part of putting him there.”
James Lee Williams, celebrated as The Vivienne, grew up in Liverpool's Pride Quarter before rising to fame through RuPaul’s Drag Race UK and Dancing on Ice.
The event promises a night filled with musical entertainment, including performances from RuPaul’s Drag Race contestants and local artists, culminating in a DJ set by Regina McQueen.
Raffle prizes include Givenchy goody bags, dinner at San Carlo, tours of popular TV sets, and various theatre tickets across Liverpool, with tickets costing £10 each on the night.
John Hyland, Proudly Said, who manages the campaign, told Hits Radio Pride: "The campaign is seeing us trying to raise as much money as possible so we are able to plan, design and licence this piece of public art, and bring it right here to Liverpool.
"It will act in so many ways for the city and its LGBT+ community, whilst also raising awareness of those going through substance misuse.
"It's a long term piece of work that will benefit everyone.
"And this event's so fabulous, and has involved so many people... The raffle itself is something to come for, and we just want to raise as much money as we possibly can to get this project off the ground.
"James' mum recently reflected on why she wants to bring it to Liverpool, and she thought back to the vigil which happened in the days after Viv's passing.
"The amount of people who came out to remember her son brought tears to her eyes, and reminded her why the statue needs to be in Liverpool."
He added: “Think about who walks past that spot in a year.
"People who came looking for her, and people who had no idea she was there. Someone on their way to work, someone on a night out, someone who has never heard the name. They stop, they read it, and they learn what happened to James.
"That is thousands of people a year understanding something about addiction and stigma that they did not understand the day before, and it does not cost a penny once she is standing there.
“And it is a marker for the Quarter. We have lost venues, we have lost footfall, and this is the first permanent thing anyone has put back.
"Every pound of your ticket goes to the statue. Come on Friday, have a brilliant night, and know you helped put her there.”