Bosses paying £20,000 for celebrities to entertain staff during Zoom Christmas parties

The pandemic has put paid to the traditional office Christmas party — for this year at least.

So, unable to splash out on a big event, a growing number of employers are instead hiring celebrities to appear on festive Zoom calls.

Stars on the books of event planners offering celebrity Christmas calls include chat show host Graham Norton, comedians James Corden and Katherine Ryan, we well as singers Paloma Faith and and Rita Ora.

Planners say the fees are 20 to 50 per cent lower than they would be for a real-life appearance, making big stars more affordable.

Experts say the A-list — including Joanna Lumley, Fearne Cotton and David Walliams, who are all on the books of events company JLA— will set firms back “upwards of £20,000”.

In the “midrange”, model Kelly Brook will charge £12,000. At the cheaper end of the scale, you can book Lindsay Lohan for £294 via Cameo. On Social Eyes, you can “hang out” with Matt King — aka Super Hans from Peep Show — for £155, enjoy a mindfulness session with actress Patsy Palmer for £75 or attend a quiz hosted by comedian Rufus Hound for as little as £15 a person.

Award-winning West End actress Cassidy Janson, the star of & Juliet, has been approached by one of the country’s biggest charities to perform a 30-minute set via Zoom at their Christmas party.

She said: “I will probably get glammed up, or dress up as a fairy, and sing some nice Christmas songs for their staff and then encourage them to sing along at the end. She added that Zoom appearances provided some “financial relief” in a difficult year. “It is just a natural evolution of my normal work,” she said.

“Us in the arts are good at adapting, and this is proof of that. For us, it is amazing to have a bit of income coming in during lockdown.”

DJ Fat Tony, who has played for Madonna and the late artist Prince, is also booked for “countless” parties. His team said: “The sets will be done live, via Zoom or similar platforms where all the staff will be able to log in and see Tony DJing. In certain cases, the companies are even distributing care packages to their staff including Christmas meals and drinks. Tony’s been booked for fashion houses, hair academies and even a transport company.”

Salman Haqqi, a personal finance expert at money.co.uk, said a loss of revenue during lockdown has led more celebrities to list themselves for virtual appearances, adding: “With businesses unable to host Christmas parties face to face, employers are also finding alternative ways to treat their employees this festive season.

"Booking agents say stars are expecting to receive anywhere between 50 to 80 per cent of their in-person cost, to host a Zoom-based event.”

Edward Poland, co-founder of Hire Space, said: “We can pretty much ask anyone to do whatever the client would like. We have a list of about 200 to 300 acts and performers we work with.

"This year has been tough on events and artists. For them, it is a no- brainer. The cash is good. A lot of artists take it very seriously and are seeing it as something they will be doing for a while.”

Lee Beattie, of Social Eyes, said: “Christmas is a very important time for the events industry. People want to get together, with their family, friends, colleagues. A celebrity appearance is something special, something different.”

Nick Rogers is the founder of casting and PR agency The Cast - which books celebrities or brand and marketing campaigns. He said he’d seen a “surge” in virtual bookings.

“It is a trend that started in Lockdown 1 and is one that has been met with interest from both sides of agents and talent plus brands and business,” he said. “And it is still surging. But it is nothing new - celebrities have been doing video calls for awards ceremonies or appearances at conferences for years.

“Nowadays you can have everything from a call with Carole Baskin to an A-lister doing an after dinner corporate speech or being a keynote speaker at an Apple Event.

“The virtual world provides an innovative and creative way of talent to make money and it expands marketing opportunities for brands. Appearances and partnerships make up a good chunk of a celebrity’s income. So for them, it is important that they maintain that income while real life campaigns and events are limited or non-existent.

“It is becoming more and more clear that digital and social media is how business will be done going forward.”

Similar to Cameo, Thrillz is another website where Londoners and businesses alike can book celebrities for video calls. Its planners are currently booking celebrity guests for four big accounting firms and VC funds in the UK for their Christmas parties and annual shareholder meetings.

Popular choices for speakers from Thrillz have been comedian Josh Berry, sportsman Matt Dawson, and snooker player Dennis Taylor amongst others. Also available on the site are the stars of Selling Sunset Mary, Romain and Amanza as well as American socialite Tara Reid and actor Tom Arnold.

Anjan Luthra the founder of Thrillz said: “We have seen a big increase in Corporate demand in November - specifically for virtual celebrity appearances at Christmas Parties and other corporate events. For half the price of a Live Appearance, you can get a Tier 1 star to attend your virtual events and add a bit of glamour to the event.”