Entertainment

Celebrities who have received the Covid vaccine

Famous faces have been sharing their experiences of getting the jab.
Famous faces have been sharing their experiences of getting the jab. Famous faces have been sharing their experiences of getting the jab.

Celebrities from the worlds of music, film and TV are among the 15 million people in the UK to have received their first dose of a coronavirus jab.

Many have been sharing their experiences of receiving the vaccine in a bid to encourage others.

Here are some of the first to receive their vaccinations.

– Tom Parker

2013 Fusion Festival – Birmingham
2013 Fusion Festival – Birmingham Tom Parker of The Wanted (Joe Giddens/PA)

The Wanted singer, 32, received the Pfizer/BioNTech jab and encouraged his followers to do the same “so we can all move on”.

The father-of-two is undergoing treatment for a brain tumour and is therefore likely to be in a priority group for the clinically extremely vulnerable.

– Sir David Attenborough

David Attenborough
David Attenborough (John Stillwell/PA)

The naturalist and broadcaster, 94, received the Covid-19 jab in January, months after speaking of the “immense suffering” caused by the pandemic.

He had previously spoken of his concern that “people will take their eyes off the environmental issue” because of Covid-19.

– Sir Tony Robinson

Blackadder star and TV historian Sir Tony, 74, was given his first dose of the jab at Lord’s Cricket Ground in January.

He tweeted to say it was a moment he will “never forget”, adding: “I hope you all get yours really soon.”

– Nick Hewer

Apprentice and Countdown star Hewer, 76, praised the “amazing efficiency” of the vaccination centre where he received his jab.

He added on Twitter: “I was in and out in about 7 minutes (honestly).”

– Angela Rippon

Angela Rippon
Angela Rippon Angela Rippon receives the vaccine (PR handout/PA)

The journalist and television presenter, 76, urged people to ignore the “nonsense” and “fake news” around the vaccine after receiving her jab.

Addressing those who have reservations about getting the vaccine, she told the PA news agency: “If they are based on a lot of the fake news that is around I would say talk to someone that you trust and get the truth and not the fantasy – not the fake news.”

– Sir Ian McKellen

Sir Ian McKellen comments
Sir Ian McKellen comments (Jeff Moore/PA)

The veteran actor, 81, was vaccinated at Queen Mary’s University Hospital in London, saying after that he felt “euphoric”.

The Lord Of The Rings star said all elderly people should ensure they get the jab, adding it was “painless”.

– Prue Leith

The Great British Bake Off judge, 80, shared an image of herself wearing a mask while a medic administered the vaccine in December.

“Who wouldn’t want immunity from #Covid19 with a painless jab??” she tweeted.

In February, she confirmed she had received the second dose at Chipping Norton Health Centre.

– Michael Eavis

The Glastonbury festival founder, 85, got his vaccination at a GP-led community vaccination site in Shepton Mallet on New Year’s Eve.

The festival has been called off for a second year running because of the pandemic.

– Lionel Blair

The dancer and presenter, 92, received the first of his two injections at an NHS vaccine centre in the grounds of the horse racing course at Epsom, Surrey.

He said it meant a “great deal” to have been given the jab and dubbed those who turn it down “crazy”.

“I couldn’t believe it when they called me and said, ‘It’s next week and then the next one is in January’, and here I am,” he said.

“I’m just… thinking, thank God I live here.”

– Michael Whitehall

The 80-year-old father and sometime co-star of comedian Jack Whitehall also shared a snap on Twitter of himself in hospital getting the first part of the vaccine.

He wrote: “Here was I worrying about a little prick, no, not @jackwhitehall, which was brilliantly organised by @GSTTnhs.

“Thank you to all the kind and wonderful NHS staff who administered my COVID-19 vaccine last night.”

– Marty Wilde

Coronavirus – Thu Dec 10, 2020
Coronavirus – Thu Dec 10, 2020 (East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust/PA)

The 81-year-old rock and roll star, famed for a string of hits in the 50s and 60s, was given the jab at Lister Hospital in Stevenage.

He said getting vaccinated was “common sense”, adding: “The whole thing is just the right thing to do. You need an injection.”

London-born Wilde, whose real name is Reginald Smith, was also treated at Lister Hospital during the first national lockdown after collapsing at his Hertfordshire home. He was treated for an irregular heartbeat.

– Shakin Stevens

Coronavirus – Sun Feb 7, 2021
Coronavirus – Sun Feb 7, 2021 Shakin’ Stevens getting the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine (HEC Ltd 2021)

Stevens – known to fans as “Shaky” – and his partner and manager Sue both received their first dose of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine in February.

The Welsh rock ‘n’ roll star, 72, said staff at Adams Park Stadium in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, had been “absolutely brilliant” and that he had felt “totally relaxed” upon arrival.

– Loyd Grossman

Coronavirus – Sat February 06, 2021
Coronavirus – Sat February 06, 2021 Broadcaster and author Loyd Grossman, 70, receives an injection of the Oxford AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine (Jacob King/PA)

The 70-year-old broadcaster and author, known widely for his range of cooking sauces, was given the Oxford/AstraZeneca injection at North Cotswold Hospital, Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire, in February.

– Dame Joan Collins

The veteran actress, 87, announced on Instagram that she had received the Oxford University/AstraZeneca jab at London’s Bloomsbury Surgery in January.

She described the procedure as both “painless and seamless”, and quipped that it came the same day the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh were vaccinated at Windsor Castle.

– Amy Dowden

The Strictly Come Dancing star, 30, who has Crohn’s Disease and is therefore on the vulnerable list, got her jab in February.

However, she revealed she was trolled after sharing the news on social media, telling Morning Live: “I was sad because I was trying to put out a positive post that hopefully there is light at the end of the tunnel.

“I don’t want to be in the vulnerable category, I didn’t choose to have Crohn’s and I would do anything not to and I wanted to hopefully show positivity that more of us are getting vaccinated the more of us that hopefully that soon things can slowly get back to normal.

“Unfortunately, you know, I can’t please everybody.”

– Philippa Perry 

The psychotherapist, author and wife of artist Grayson Perry, 63, shared her appointment slip on Twitter.

She wrote: “Didn’t feel a thing! And @FayRipley for real, volunteering at reception. RESPECT.”

– Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber

WALL OF FAME installation at the London Palladium
WALL OF FAME installation at the London Palladium Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber (Victoria Jones/PA)

The musical impresario, 72, took part in trials for the Oxford coronavirus vaccine and later he was told he had had the real jab and not the placebo.

He told Good Morning Britain: “I guessed I might have done …  I was around people who got it (coronavirus) in the period after the last lockdown and I absolutely didn’t.

“I had no effects from the trial whatsoever, I felt right as rain.”

He was told, after a different blood test recently, that he has “got so many antibodies”.

“It’s very encouraging to think… eight months later, I’m teeming with antibodies,” he said.

– Harvey Price

The son of TV star Katie Price, 18, was born with septo-optic dysplasia, Prader-Willi syndrome, autism and a learning disability and is in a priority group for the clinically vulnerable.

He went to hospital with a high temperature after suffering a reaction to the Oxford/AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine, however his mother Katie Price later said he was “home and he’s safe and he’s on form”.

– Sir Elton John and Sir Michael Caine

The duo appeared in an NHS advert urging the public to get vaccinated against coronavirus.

After apparently being given the injection, Sir Elton, 73, then references his 1983 hit I’m Still Standing by saying: “As you can see, I’m still standing, yeah, yeah, yeah.”

The video then cuts to Sir Michael, 87, as he appears to be given the vaccine.

The actor said it “didn’t hurt” before saying: “Not many people know that.”

– Alan Titchmarsh

Coronavirus – Mon Feb 1, 2021
Coronavirus – Mon Feb 1, 2021 Alan Titchmarsh receiving his Covid-19 vaccine (Ross Turner/PA)

The broadcaster and gardener, 71, said he feels “relieved” after receiving a coronavirus jab, as he heaped praise on researchers and medics involved in the vaccination programme.

He urged people to accept the offer of being vaccinated, saying: “You have got to do your bit.”

He was given the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine at a fire station in Basingstoke, Hampshire, on February 1

– Sir Tom Jones

Royal tour of the Caribbean – Day 3
Royal tour of the Caribbean – Day 3 Sir Tom Jones (Jane Barlow/PA)

The singer, 80, said he feels “bulletproof” after receiving both doses of the coronavirus vaccine.

He first revealed he’d had a jab on Jools Holland’s Annual Hootenanny broadcast on New Year’s Eve.

Now the Sex Bomb singer has said, having had his second dose, that it is a “great feeling”.