Jake Wood has made his directing debut on a 'Good Morning Britain' campaign, which is aiming to end loneliness.
Jake Wood
The 'EastEnders' actor has just two weeks of filming left on the BBC One soap and he had recently teased a secret project, and it has now been revealed he has been helming GMB's '1 Million Minutes' campaign, which asks people to pledge their time in a bid to stop loneliness becoming the next pandemic.
Jake directed a video to accompany a poem - penned by poet Hussain Manwar - about missed moments and loneliness in 2020, and the footage, which also features music provided by Naughty Boy, depicts loneliness across Britain.
Speaking on 'GMB' this morning (01.12.20), he said: "It’s the same for every family up and down the country, it’s been such a strange year ... I really wanted to try and reflect a little bit of what everyone has been through in the whole year.
"Everyone has been affected this year in loads of different ways.
"I sent out a tweet when I was looking to put some of the moments into the film, asking about some of the moments that they had missed out on this year.
"Some of the replies were absolutely heart-breaking - people have died and they have not been able to be there, people missing their grandchildren and people having chemo and not being able to support friends and family. From my point of view, it was about trying to put all of that into it.
"I think the latest figures are nine million lonely people in the UK, which is a huge staggering number.
"Again, this is one of the main reasons that I was so excited to get involved with this campaign.
"This year more than ever there are so many people in need, who are lonely and need support.
"This campaign you can just get involved, you can donate anything from an hour, as much or as little as you want to do ... pick up the phone and get involved."
On 'GMB' this month, several stars will share their own experiences alongside viewer stories of heart-breaking isolation and the heroes who made people’s lives less lonely.
What's more, the '1 Million Minutes' awards ceremony will return, co-hosted by Ben Shephard and Kate Garraway live from the 'GMB' studio.
The event will be virtual this year, and it will once again look to recognise and celebrate those dedicating their lives to helping fight loneliness in the UK.
The campaign is calling on the general public to donate their time to volunteer for incredible charities fighting loneliness including Alzheimer's Society, Captain Tom Foundation, Grief Encounter, Once Upon a Smile, Re-Engage and The Not Forgotten.
'1 Million Minutes' is part of ITV’s ‘Britain Get Talking' initiative and has seen more than 150 million minutes pledged since launching in 2016.
To pledge your support to Good Morning Britain’s 1 Million Minutes Awards go to: ITV.com/1MillionMinutes
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