OK, friends. I'm not going to lie to you. There's a few of you who have followed me because of my 700+ tweets on the history and art of St Martin in the Fields, the iconic church in central London

This iconic church is under severe financial stress. This is because, for 33 years, the upkeep of the church and support for our charitable arms has relied on our shop, our concerts, and our cafe

Because of COVID-19, none of these have been open or generating any income. And our return to a "normal" business posture may take years at this rate.

There's over a hundred staff at @smitf_london and a lot of them face losing their jobs. Many people take us for granted, but without business income, the church can't keep us on the books.

For me, it's a small second income and beer money. But for many people, @smitf_london is their livelihood. It is how they put a roof over their head and buy food. And we are a lifeline for many hundreds of people who have nowhere to turn

If any of you feel so disposed, please donate to our emergency appeal here. https://www.stmartin-in-the-fields.org/support-us/donate-now/ . .

We're undergoing a redundancy consultation and a lot of the people who work here are going to have to go. Possibly me too. But I have other employment. Some of them do not