A MUSICIAN from Minehead has successfully completed the Central European leg of his sponsored charity tour.

Anthony Knight, who went to school in Taunton, has been on tour to raise vital funds for UNICEF, an international charity that helps children in conflict zones around the world.

His current target is £20,000, which he hopes to raise by performing in venues across the globe.

Anthony's Just Giving page, which was set up last year, reads: "I'm a 17-year-old violinist from Taunton School, on a concert tour of the most exclusive hotels in Europe, to raise funds for UNICEF. The afternoon recitals feature pieces by Telemann and Bach.

"I encourage guests to make a donation at unicef.org. I'm planning to visit twelve countries in one year."

Anthony flew from Bristol to Budapest, then travelled by train to Vienna, Prague and back to Budapest, visiting three countries in one week.

Speaking about one of Anthony's impressive violin performances, Jan Korta, director of sales and marketing at Aria Hotel Prague, said: "We just had a lovely violin recital at Aria Prague earlier today performed by a young talented artist Anthony Knight."

Readers may recognise Anthony's name, since he was crowned a winner in the Pride of Somerset Youth Awards last year.

The awards were created to recognise and reward young people in Somerset for their efforts.

Anthony was given the Sandy Padgett Award, which is dedicated to those who have helped the community in an extraordinary way. 

Speaking following the awards in 2023, Philip Edwards, who was Anthony’s housemaster at Taunton School, said: “Anthony is an exceptional young man. He is using his enormous talent to support those who need help.

"I was delighted to hear that his generosity has been recognised and I hope that his story inspires other young people to make a positive difference also. We are all very proud of him, and wish him luck in his next fundraising adventure around Europe!”

At the awards, Anthony added: “My mum is Lithuanian and I have Ukrainian friends, I’m very sympathetic towards them.”

The final Benelux leg of Anthony's sponsored UNICEF Grand Tour will be in July.