Former Dublin manager Jim Gavin and pop star Keith Duffy are heading for the sunshine island of Mauritius at the end of next month to take part in an international golf event for charity.

They will join Breakfast TV host Dan Walker, one of the stars of the 2021 series of Strictly Come Dancing, in a group of eight leading personalities from the worlds of sport, entertainment and media who will travel to the Indian Ocean to compete for a prize fund of £100,000 for their chosen charities, with the winner receiving £25,000.

Duffy will be playing for AsIAm Autism Innovation while Gavin will be representing deterMND, which was established on behalf of former Antrim Gaelic football captain Anto Finnegan after he was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) in August 2012.  

Joining them in the field for the Celebrity Series Grand Final at the MCB Tour Championship – part of The Legends Tour – will be former England footballers Teddy Sheringham and Robbie Fowler, Scottish sporting legends Gordon Strachan and Gavin Hastings and television sports presenter Georgie Bingham, who is the current host for the Legends Tour and notably known for her time with ESPN and Sky.

Ex-Boyzone star Duffy said: “I am delighted to be playing in such a prestigious event, especially with it being in Mauritius. My ‘Old School Tour’ with Boyzlife starts in September, so it was perfect timing for me to play alongside other celebrities and watch the legends in action.”

The inaugural Celebrity Series Grand Final will take place on March 29 at Constance Belle Mare Plage, Mauritius, teeing off an exhilarating week of golf, followed by the MCB & Constance Pro-Am from March 30-31 and the MCB Tour Championship, which will be staged from April 1-3. 

Ex-Scotland and British Lions captain Hastings, who booked his place in the line-up after winning the Scottish Senior Open Celebrity Series at Royal Aberdeen last September, said: “I managed to play on the Constance Belle Mare Plage course in December. It is simply stunning, and it has made me even more excited to compete in the grand final.

“Winning the Scottish Senior Open Celebrity Series last year earned me a spot to play in Mauritius, and here’s hoping I can play as well again.”

Phil Harrison, chief executive officer of the Legends Tour, said: “The field of celebrities is terrific, and having people from media, business and sport get involved with the chance to win huge prizes for their chosen charities is amazing to see. 

"The Celebrity Series has been an overwhelming success, not only for our celebrities but for our members too, giving them a once-in-a-lifetime experience of playing alongside a vast range of well-known personalities that are involved with the Legends Tour.

“MCB, Constance and the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority have done an amazing job in ensuring that it will be an unforgettable event in the Indian Ocean, and I can speak on behalf of the Legends Tour in saying that we cannot wait to arrive at The Legends Course at Constance Belle Mare Plage. It is the perfect way to end the official 2021 season.”

For more information and the opportunity to play alongside the celebrity legends, former Ryder Cup captains, Major winners and true legends of the game at the MCB Tour Championship, please CLICK HERE.

The eight celebrities will be playing for the following chosen charities in Mauritius:

• Dan Walker – The Sheffield Children’s Hospital 

• Georgie Bingham – The Golf Foundation (and) Cancer Research

• Keith Duffy – ASIAM.ie

• Robbie Fowler – Zoe’s Place

• Jim Gavin – deterMND Tackling Motor Neurone Disease

• Gavin Hastings – Cure Parkinsons

• Teddy Sheringham – Macmillan Cancer

• Gordon Strachan – Muirhouse LIFT Community Centre