Celebrities urge ethnic minority communities to get coronavirus vaccine
26 January 2021, 19:01 | Updated: 26 January 2021, 19:26
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, Meera Syal, and Baroness Warsi are among the famous faces urging people from ethnic minority communities to get the coronavirus vaccine.
Cricketer Moeen Ali, actor and comedian Adil Ray, actor Sanjeev Bhaskar and comedian Romesh Ranganathan also feature in the video.
The famous faces appeared in the clip which begins with the words: "If you could save someone's life, would you?"
READ MORE: UK passes grim milestone of 100,000 coronavirus deaths, ONS data shows
READ MORE: 31 Met officers face £200 Covid fines over haircuts in Bethnal Green police station
Ray shared it on Twitter, writing: "Hello, a group of us have come together to encourage people from Ethnic Minority communities to take the vaccine. Please share, retweet and watch here."
Speaking in the video, he added: "Looking after others and serving our community is what we do.
We all have to do something to help one another during these difficult times. Here's a message we have recorded for members of our Ethnic Minority communities. Please share and retweet. #covid19 #vaccine pic.twitter.com/16YUvgxxse
— Adil Ray OBE 💙 (@adilray) January 25, 2021
"It's how we have been brought up. It's why we have such immense pride when a family member becomes a doctor or a nurse.
"We have so much respect for them. They need our respect now more than ever. They need our help."
In a rebuke to a conspiracy theory about the vaccine, Ranganathan said: "There's no chip or tracker in the vaccine to keep watching where you go.
"Your mobile phone actually does a much better job of that."
People Just Do Nothing actor Asim Chaudhry and former EastEnders star Nina Wadia also appear in the video.
Chaudhry said: "The vaccine does not change or damage our DNA. Not taking the vaccine can damage us more."
Wadia added: "Not only will you be saving your life, but you will be saving other lives too and there can be no better gift than that."
The latest Government figures show more than 6.3 million people across the UK have received their first dose of the vaccine - with a record-breaking 491,970 being injected in a single day over the weekend.
Listen & subscribe: Global Player | Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify
