BBC Children In Need has raised £45,507,536 following its annual appeal show.
This is £6.3 million more than last year, when the 2024 show ended with an on-the-night total of £39,210,850.
The three-hour-long programme, which aired on Friday night, included performances from Ella Eyre, Sam Ryder and Lewis Capaldi who played the piano while singing his new track, The Day That I Die.
There was also a rendition of Lou Reed's Perfect Day by Eurovision stars Remember Monday and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra.
The band, who represented the UK at the song contest earlier this year, performed the classic during a montage of testimonies from young people who have benefited from the charity.
Another performer was Tom Fletcher’s son Buzz, who said he had "always wanted to follow" in his father’s footsteps, after the two performed a song taken from the new animated film, Pudsey And The Thread Of Hope.
The yellow bear, who acts as a mascot for the charity, appeared in a sketch, alongside 16-year-old presenter Lenny Rush, where they were seen embarking on their new BBC roles as "TV big cheeses".
In a voiceover from a clip that showed the bear and TV star being photographed outside BBC Broadcasting House, Mel Giedroyc said Rush had "vowed to put children at the heart of absolutely all BBC programming with immediate effect".
In another clip, Richard Madeley threatened to fire Rush and said: "We both know what’s going to happen if things don’t improve, don’t we? Lenny is going to be fired."
The sketch showing Rush and Pudsey Bear as two new BBC bosses comes following the resignation of director-general Tim Davie and news chief Deborah Turness.
Rush hosted the appeal show, filmed live from MediaCityUK in Salford, alongside BBC Radio 2 presenters Vernon Kay and Paddy McGuinness, The Saturdays star Rochelle Humes, TV presenter Giedroyc, and TV chef and musician Big Zuu.
Celebrities including Jack Black and Jessie J explained how to donate to the charity in video clips, and presenter Stephen Mulhern demonstrated how gift aid donations worked in a spoof of Deal Or No Deal featuring Pudsey Bear.
Presenters Giedroyc and Big Zuu worked up a sweat as they were led by fitness expert Joe Wicks in a live workout, also featuring some of the professional dancers from Strictly Come Dancing.
Elsewhere, DJ AG livestreamed a four-hour set from the piazza outside the Children In Need studio, and teenage carer Eloise from Scotland joined the London cast of Starlight Express on stage for a performance.
Among the other performers were the BBC Children In Need choir, who performed a rendition of Yellow by Coldplay.
Earlier on Friday, BBC Radio 2 presenter Sara Cox completed her Children In Need challenge, in which she covered 135 miles - the equivalent of five marathons in five days.
During the appeal show it was revealed that the challenge had so far raised £9,523,028 for Children In Need.
The radio show host, who travelled on foot from Kielder Forest in Northumberland to Pudsey in Leeds, said she was an "absolute wreck" during the appeal show and added: "It was a rollercoaster, like, literally my mood was changing every three, four seconds, it was a lot."
Children In Need funds family centres, community spaces, youth clubs and refuges, homeless shelters, hospices and helplines across the UK.
Claire Hoyle, chief campaigns and engagement officer at the charity, said: "The generosity shown this evening has been truly extraordinary - especially at a time when life is so challenging for so many.
"Across the UK, children and young people are facing unimaginable struggles, often carrying burdens far too heavy to bear alone, but thanks to the UK public we can continue to fund the vital projects and incredible project workers who bring hope when it’s needed most."
BBC Children In Need 2025 is available to watch on BBC iPlayer and viewers can also watch The Best Bits on BBC One and BBC iPlayer at 1.45pm on Sunday 16 November.
Source: Press Association
