Hugh Bonneville wowed viewers at home during his appearance on Thursday's The One Show after revealing his considerable weight loss. As the Downton Abbey actor chatted to presenters Gethin Jones and Alex Jones about the Chichester Festival Theatre's Bank Holiday plans, viewers took to social media to express their surprise.
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WATCH: Hugh Bonneville shows off dramatic weight loss
One person wrote: "Hugh Bonneville is unrecognisable on #TheOneShow he's lost loads of weight!" A second person tweeted: "Wow, I didn't recognise Hugh Bonneville on #TheOneShow to start with! What a transformation!" A third person even wrote: "Blimey, Hugh Bonneville is half the man he used to be #TheOneShow."
Plenty of others went as far as to question if it was indeed him. "Almost didn't recognise Hugh Bonneville on #TheOneShow. Lost so much weight," wrote another fan, while another commented: "I almost didn't recognise Hugh Bonneville on #TheOneShow is that really him?"
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© Photo: BBCViewers barely recognised the actor
The actor was discussing the way in which the Chichester Festival Theatre is continuing to boost the arts during the coronavirus pandemic. The star told the presenters: "Well this is down at Chichester Festival Theatre, and it's their way of reminding the public that it's still there and it's ready to go, it's waiting in the wings for its return." He continued: "It's doing a wonderful weekend over the Bank Holiday weekend. [...] I'm kicking off Monday morning, Bank Holiday Monday reading some stories with some puppeteers for the younger folk."
© Photo: BBCHugh showed off his dramatic weight loss on The One Show
The 56-year-old also discussed the initiative he has been working with that seeks to thanks helpers and those who have made a difference during the pandemic. The campaign, #PinYourThanks held a badge design competition for children and Hugh even surprised a young contributor of the campaign, by announcing she was the winner of the competition live on air!
"This great initiative Pin Your Thanks, started in South London as a way to say thank you to people who have gone out of their way to make a difference. This is a way of thanking those who might have gone unnoticed, the unsung heroes," he said. After finalist Evie appeared with her mum, Hugh told her: "Well there have been hundreds of entries from all over the country and we were going to announce the winner later in the week [...] but I'm delighted to say Evie you are the winner."
Pin Your Thanks is an initiative giving thanks to those who've helped during the COVID-19 pandemic with beautifully designed pins from some of the UK's national treasures including Ringo Starr, Keira Knightley and Joe Lycett. All Pin Your Thanks profits donated to the NHS Charities Together - COVID-19 Urgent Appeal and Volunteering Matters COVID-19 Response Appeal. For more information, you can visit their website here.
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