The comedian surprised young people being supported on the Teenage Cancer Trust unit at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital as part of his headline UK comedy tour Hustle.
Romesh, who has been a vocal supporter of the Teenage Cancer Trust for many years, met families receiving support from the charity and spoke to staff to learn about how the charity is making a difference to the lives of teenagers and young people living with cancer in the Merseyside region.
As part of his Hustle tour, the comedian has invited more than 150 frontline staff and young people supported by the Teenage Cancer Trust to see the show free of charge.
Romesh met 13-year old Logan from Preston, who is receiving chemotherapy on the unit after recently being diagnosed with T-Cell lymphoblastic lymphoma, a rare type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Logan said he enjoyed meeting the comedian and that they chatted about their common interests such as playing Fortnite and watching the anime series One Piece.
Logan was joined by his parents Jon and Nicola, who said they are fans of Romesh and watch him on TV.
Jon said that despite Logan only being diagnosed a few weeks ago, the support they have received from the Teenage Cancer Trust has been brilliant.
“The staff have the ability to humanise it all,” Jon said.
“Not only do they explain the medical information in a way that everyone can understand, but they also focus on the social side for the young people who are on the unit.
“While having their treatment, the young people have the space to come into the social room, play games together, sit and chat and do normal things that young people like doing – that’s really important.
“As parents we are being supported too.”
Nicola, who bonded with Romesh over their careers in teaching, added: “By being on a Teenage Cancer Trust unit, it gives Logan an opportunity to meet other young people who are going through similar experiences and people his age, who he can speak to and relate to.
“As parents we can support Logan in every way possible but we don’t truly know what it’s like for him, so for Logan to be around other people his age, I hope that will be really helpful for him.”
After touring the premises, Romesh was challenged to game of pool by 15-year-old Jack, who is having cancer treatment on the unit.
It seems that the 46-year old comedian let the nerves get to him, resulting in a victory for the teenager.
Faye Hindmarsh, a Teenage Cancer Trust Youth Support Worker, said the visit was a highlight for the young people on the unit.
“Romesh was great with the young people and he gave them a real boost,” she said.
“Romesh is really down-to-earth, he got involved playing pool and got everyone laughing and chatting.
“Everyone had a really nice time and he’s welcome back anytime.”
In 2023, Romesh was announced as Teenage Cancer Trust’s first comedy Icon.
The Icon role is for high-profile figures across the entertainment industry who have volunteered to give a year of their time to deliver transformational change for young people with cancer.
Reflecting on his visit to the unit, Romesh said it was an amazing opportunity to go to the unit and see first-hand what the Teenage Cancer Trust has helped to provide for teenagers and young adults with cancer.
He added: “Meeting young people and their families was quite emotional because having cancer at any age is horrible.
“But having cancer as a teenager feels like a particularly cruel time for it to happen and what the charity is enabling to happen, is for those young people to go through that in a supportive and comfortable way possible.
“I am very grateful to Teenage Cancer Trust for what they do to help these families. It’s incredibly important work and the charity need as much help as possible.”
Romesh will be raising funds for both the Teenage Cancer Trust and the suicide prevention charity Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM), of which he is a patron, throughout his tour.
