LOCKDOWN LEADER: Captain Tom Moore

There have been many heartwarming and inspirational stories of selfless sacrifice and public charity-raising to emerge from the global pandemic; this has been among the most moving. A 99-year-old army veteran has raised over an astonishing £12m for the NHS by performing a 100-lap marathon of his garden with the aid of a walking frame.

Captain Tom Moore, from Keighley, in West Yorkshire, originally trained as a civil engineer before enlisting for World War Two. He rose through the ranks to captain, serving in India and Burma. And now he’s helping to fight another war – but this time, against a tiny, unseen, but just as deadly enemy.

Following treatment for cancer and a broken hip, Captain Tom set up a fundraising page for the “magnificent" NHS staff” via NHS Charities Together. He would complete 100 laps of the 25-metre (82ft) loop in his Bedfordshire garden before his 100th birthday at the end of May. “I do [laps] each day, so that eventually I'll get to 100, then after that I shall continue and do some more,” he said.

The original target was £1,000. Only now, he has more than smashed that, thanks to some 170,000 donors worldwide. The money raised will be spent on wellbeing packs, rest and recuperation rooms, electronic devices for patients to keep in contact with friends and family, and community groups supporting discharged patients.

"All those brave and super doctors and nurses we have got deserve every penny,” said Captain Tom, “and I hope we get some more for them too.”

Said Ellie Orton, chief executive of NHS Charities Together, “I think I absolutely join the rest of the country in being truly inspired and profoundly humbled by Captain Tom and what he has achieved. Thank you for being an inspiration and a role model.”

Added Captain Tom, “Let's all carry on and remember that things will get better. We have had problems before – we have overcome them – and we shall all overcome the same thing again.”

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