Benedict Cumberbatch has taken time out of his successful run as Hamlet to support Syrian refugees. He recorded a special message in his dressing room at the Barbican asking for the public to open their hearts and wallets to help those fleeing violence.
The video serves as an introduction to a charity single – a reissue of the Crowded House single Help is Coming.The actor's appeal comes after Bob Geldof said he and his wife Jeanne announced they would personally offer shelter to three refugee families.
In the recording Benedict said: "As people watching this tragedy unfold from the safety of our homes, with our safe children, we want to say that we see you, we hear you and help is coming.”
He also quoted lines from Home, a poem by Somali writer Warsan Shire, which includes the words: “No one leaves home unless home is the mouth of a shark… No one puts their child in a boat unless the water is safer than the land.”
Benedict was perhaps moved to act when considering his own good fortune this year. He and his wife Sophie Hunter recently became parents to a baby boy whom they have called Christopher Carlton Cumberbatch.
The classic name is keeping with the couple's penchant for traditional gestures. Carlton is a family middle name given to Benedict himself, his father and grandfather.
Benedict and Sophie announced their engagement last November via a notice in The Times, telling an American newspaper: "It's what I would have done if I wasn't famous".
He and the elegant theatre director then wed in a romantic Valentine's Day ceremony when Sophie was already expecting.
In professional terms, the actor is also riding high after receiving rave reviews for his Hamlet – which prompted fans to queue around the clock outside the theatre to get tickets.Then shortly after the birth of his son, the proud father was named a CBE in the Queen's birthday honours.
After awards season in America the thespian revealed that he was more than ready to take a break and prepare for his new role as a father.
"I've been on more flights to Los Angeles and back than I can count," the star told the Daily Mail in February. "All of that has been special, but I'm ready to have a couple of months to ourselves to prepare for the baby and do some nesting. It's a real-life role, not a part."
