James McAvoy donated £275,000 ($340,000) to help purchase vital equipment for front liners fighting against COVID-19.
He gave his donation to Masks for Heroes, a crowdfunding campaign set up by a group of U.K. doctors to help raise money for personal protective equipment for NHS staff.
In an Instagram video, he said, “We’ve all heard stories about doctors and nurses having to buy their own personal protective equipment from the Internet or DIY stores, and the products aren’t good enough and frankly neither is that situation.”
“Not only does it put the doctors and nurses at risk of contracting COVID-19 themselves, but it puts them at a higher risk of passing it on to their patients, or their patient’s family and giving them COVID-19. This situation is truly urgent, and time is of the essence.”
He also praised health workers who were “fighting a war” against the dreaded coronavirus.
“Thank you so much to the NHS for everything you’ve done for me in my life. You’ve been there since the day I was born. You’ve saved my life in the past and, who knows, you may save my life again in the future. And I’m so glad we’re trying to raise some money to help save your lives going forward.”
In an interview, he said, “One of the main reasons I wanted to give money, and why I upped the amount of money, was not just to get [Personal Protective Equipment] across there, which is so important, but secondarily I’d say it was more to show a sign of support to the frontline staff.”
“I’ve heard that morale is incredibly low and they’re feeling exposed and vulnerable and like they haven’t been supported properly,” he added.
“I think we’ve got to protect those incredible doctors and surgeons and porters and the lady that fills the vending machine at the hospital, and we’ve got to protect all of those people by staying indoors, we’ve got to protect all of those people by social distancing and by taking it seriously, and I think people are starting to take it more seriously.
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