Jay Blades has opened up about the moving moment he contacted a beloved fan of The Repair Shop for a video call, shortly before their passing from coronavirus.
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The presenter, who was recently awarded an MBE in the Queen's birthday honours, explained he took part in a video call with the elderly fan after his stint in hospital, making him an 'honorary expert' in the process.
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Reflecting on the poignant anecdote, the restoration expert told the Radio Times last month: "I made two members of our community – our society – honorary members of The Repair Shop. One of them was a man in his 90s."
He added: "His granddaughter contacted me and said, 'He recently had COVID and is out of hospital, but we don't think he has much time to live. Could you potentially send a video message?' I contacted the granddaughter and we FaceTimed her grandfather.
"When I made this man an honorary expert, all the family on the call were crying. I was crying. I recently received a text telling me he'd passed away, but the family were over the moon with what we did."
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© Photo: BBCJay has been a presenter since 2017
Putting community first is something that Jay, 50, takes huge pride in. The TV star is known for giving back and recently took part in a campaign to raise awareness for those doing all they can for their community during lockdown.
In an interview with HELLO! back in November 2020, Jay said: "I think it's a good thing that people have recognised people out there in their community doing things for people [but] it is sad that we've had to have a global pandemic to actually make us realise that.
"I've always been a champion of a community, to me I'm just a glorified community worker that they put in front of a camera, first and foremost I always want to support my community, but it's sad that not everybody has that same kind of thinking, but now because of the pandemic we are recognising."
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