Viral Queen Elizabeth sketch gets charity print from THEMPC

THEMPC has sold almost 2,000 charity prints within five days
THEMPC has sold almost 2,000 charity prints within five days - Credit: Murphys Sketches

A sketch of Queen Elizabeth II reunited with Prince Philip that went viral on social media has been converted into a series of prints to raise money for children’s charity the NSPCC.

THEMPC, a marketing printer based in Basingstoke, took on the job after co-owner Emma Marsh found the sketch - and a plea for help printing it - online. 

Within 48 hours of launch, THEMPC had received over 1,100 orders for prints of the sketch, which shows Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip sitting on a picnic rug together with a corgi.

The artist, Kerri Cunningham, who creates poems and sketches based on her life as a mother of three under the name Murphys Sketches, said the response to her original post had been unbelievable.

She said: “I kept getting lovely emails from people asking if they could buy the sketch. The volume of emails was huge but it didn’t feel right to make a profit from something I only ever intended as a mark of respect.

“Then a family member mentioned the Queen had been a patron of the NSPCC [until] she was 90 and seeing as my husband and I have three young children, it felt right to raise money for such a good cause.”

Cunningham then put out a call for help on her Instagram to try to find a printer.

Marsh said: “When I saw Kerri’s plea for help, I knew we had the business capabilities she needed. Plus, we have three young children and already support local children’s charities through our business so it felt like we were perfectly aligned.”

Marsh’s husband and co-owner of THEMPC, Paul Marsh, then worked with the company’s development team to build a website for the print, print samples, and agree on the products to be sold.

“Paul’s worked so hard to turn this around - he’s been up [working] until midnight most evenings this week.”

Orders are processed online, and sent directly to THEMPC’s print room via the company’s own on-demand printing software, SwagOnline, which it developed in-house.

The charity prints are then printed on a Canon ImagePress c810 colour laser printer, on Fedrigoni Stucco Old Mill 280gsm paper.

Cunningham said she hoped the Queen would approve of the charitable cause, adding: “This might be my only opportunity to do something really good for charity and raise a serious amount of money to help children having the toughest time.”

Marsh said: “We’re just excited and honoured to be part of something good during such a sad time.”