Picture Gallery: Children's Reading Fund launches at The Shard

The event was one of the first to be held at The Shard and took place on the 69th floor of the skyscraper.

The project is a new children’s reading initiative from independent charity Booktrust. The fund hopes to raise £2 million over three years to support the UK’s most vulnerable children through the power of stories and reading.

Celebrities including Joanna Trollope, Cerrie Burnell and Gaby Roslin joined fictional stars including Roald Dahl’s Matilda and Jacqueline Wilson’s Tracy Beaker, alongside 200 other guests at the launch.

Ampersand’s canapés all took a children’s literary theme. These included 'Treasure Island' (tea and rum smoked salmon on a blini with sour cream and saffron; 'The Hobbit' (rare roast beef fillet on lava bread with cider and rhubarb chutney); and 'James and the Giant Peach' (duck and foie gras rillette with peach jelly).

Natalie Mainwaring, head of sales and operations at Ampersand, said: "Every one of us recalls that magical moment when as a child we were introduced to a book we love, so it is an honour to be involved in this launch. As a business we have scaled the heights commercially and now we have physically with this event at The Shard."

Click here to see our video of The View from The Shard.

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