Captain Tom Moore was honoured this morning with a Mirror Pride of Britain Award for his fundraising walk that has raised £28million for the NHS.
Appearing on video link on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, Tom was told of his early birthday surprise by Pride of Britain host Carol Vorderman.
The 99-year-old army veteran completed 100 laps of his garden for NHS Charities together last week, in advance of the target of finishing the walk before his 100th birthday on April 30.
Tom has received over 70,000 birthday cards in light of his achievement and when introducing the award, Carol commented “it might not surprise you that we’ve had almost that many nominations for you to win a Pride of Britain Award.”
On hearing the news live from his home in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire, Tom told the show, “I’m in totally in awe of this award, it’s such a prestigious one, and thank you to everyone who voted.”
Recipients of the Mirror’s awards are nominated by the public and celebrate the achievements of remarkable people living in Britain who are said to make the world a better place.
Carol paid tribute to the army veteran’s spirit in rallying the nation during the coronavirus outbreak, saying: “Tom, you’ve raised a quite frankly ridiculous amount of money, you have inspired everyone, young and old alike, and you’ve given us all something to smile about in these difficult times.
“You are the embodiment of what it means to be a Pride of Britain winner.”
The awards are usually presented in the autumn, with an exception made this year for Tom to be honoured in a surprise before his 100th birthday.
The awards ceremony run by the Mirror last year celebrated 20 years since its launch. The paper has said Tom will receive his award in person later in the year when the pandemic restrictions are lifted.
Tom’s accolade comes after newspapers last week called for a knighthood for the 99-year-old army veteran.
