Actors attend a charity fundraising soiree organized by Hong Kong Television Broadcasting Co., Ltd for quake-hit region in southwest China's Sichuan Province, in south China's Hong Kong, May 17, 2008.

A joint effort by a galaxy of Hong Kong entertainers has raised 220 million Hong Kong dollars (US$28.2 million) for the victims of the Sichuan earthquake.

Andy Lau, Gigi Leung, Jacky Cheung, and Joey Yung as well as 60 other stars gathered at the local TVB station on Saturday for a mass fund-raising event, just five days after the devastating earthquake jolted Sichuan Province, killing 28,881 people.

Donation calls poured in as stars performed heart-warming songs and expressed confidence that the ongoing battle against the disaster would ultimately be successful.

The show was planned to end at 11:00 PM, but was extended an extra hour until midnight because of the flood of donations coming through the hotline.

"We want to tell our brothers and sisters in Sichuan that you are never alone," Eric Tsang, actor and honorary president of the Hong Kong Performing Artistes Guild, was quoted by Xinhua news agency. "Hong Kong people are always ready to help," he added.

TVB's centenarian executive chairman Sir Run Run Shaw, who had recently been discharged from hospital, arrived on the scene to encourage donations. Earlier reports say Sir Run Run Shaw personally donated 100 million Hong Kong dollars to the earthquake relief efforts.