The sum was raised by the extra profits from Platinum ticket sales for his record-breaking stand up show Mortality.
The Office star will distribute the money to 22 worldwide animal charities including PDSA, Pen Farthing’s Nowzad, and The Celia Hammond Animal Trust which offers low cost vet care.
All Dogs Matter, which was founded by Ira Moss in November 2009 with the support of Hampstead actor and patron Peter Egan, will get £100,000.
The 64-year-old comic has been a long time supporter of the charity, which is headquartered in Aylmer Parade East Finchley, and helps to rehome hundreds of unwanted dogs in London.
Other recipients include Cornish monkey sanctuary Wild Futures, elephant sanctuary The Pangea Trust, and an animal rescue charity based in New York.
Gervais has lived in Hampstead for many years and last year bought a £14.5 million nine-bed home in the neighbourhood.
He also shot his Netflix series Afterlife in the area.
Asked about giving away such a huge sum of money, he said: “My mum always used to say ‘You can’t take it with you’.
“No I can’t mum. But I could’ve bought 30 speedboats and raced ‘em round the Med with my mates, off our heads on weed and Bollinger. Anyway. Too late now.”
In a bid to beat the ticket touts, Platinum Tickets guaranteed premium seats at market rates. The £2.5 million donated to good causes is added to the £1.9 million generated by the previous Armageddon tour.
Gervais is about to release the Netflix special of his 80-date global arena tour Mortality which tackles getting older, the state of the world, the “absurdities of life” and the inevitability of death.
It will stream globally on the platform from Tuesday, December 30, 2025.
