Media: Talk of the Trade: Stars can be rather unappealing

ONLY three appeals on Radio 4's The Week's Good Cause achieved five-figure sums in the second quarter of this year, according to the BBC. By far the most successful was Sir John Wilson's appeal for the Impact Foundation, aimed at preventing disability. That raised pounds 106,597, a long way ahead of John McCarthy's plea for the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture, which raised pounds 30,052. Third was the broadcaster Anthony Clare, who brought in donations of pounds 20,093 for the Defeat Depression Campaign. Famous names do not always guarantee good yields - the lowest was pounds 2,374 by the actor Christopher Timothy for the Hyperactive Children's Support Group.