Viewers across the country were moved last night by Christopher Eccleston's powerful reading of a poem dedicated to the bravery of NHS workers fighting coronavirus.
The poem was written by Matthew Kelly, a service manager for Wigan Council whose partner works as a district nurse, and has been widely shared in the past week.
Eccleston first read the poem on BBC Radio 5 Live on Friday, but returned to read it live to the nation again on last night's edition of The One Show.
The poem compares the work of doctors, nurses and carers to that of soldiers who fought in the First and Second World Wars, with emotional lines like:
"They leaped from the trenches and didn’t think twice,
"Some never came back, the ultimate price."
The poem ends with the poignant message: "We love you, our heroes, Lest we forget."
The One Show presenter Alex Jones was moved to tears in the studio as she thanked Eccleston for his reading, while many people watching at home felt a similar reaction.
Christopher Eccleston is currently starring in BBC One's drama series The A Word, about a young boy with autism and his family.
The One Show airs weekdays at 7pm on BBC One.
