A DOWNEND man who has raised thousands of pounds for a children’s charity was stunned when he was thanked for his efforts – by Hollywood superstar Tom Cruise.
Lloyd Kembrey was invited to London by the BBC on the premise that he was being interviewed for a documentary about endurance fundraising.
But about 20 minutes in to the interview, the door to the hotel room where they were filming opened and Cruise walked in.
The star of Top Gun and the Mission: Impossible movie series delivered a message as part of a feature on The One Show called One Big Thank You, aimed at highlighting people who have “gone the extra mile to help others in their community”.
Lloyd was picked out for his outstanding record of fundraising for children’s hospice at home charity, Jessie May.
He has raised around £60,000 for the charity in honour of two cousins who died in their teens from a life-limiting condition, including £48,000 in a year of extreme challenges that ranged from an ice ultra-marathon to climbing the equivalent height of Mount Everest on a 12m (39ft) wall.
Lloyd said: “Honestly, it completely took me by surprise. When you see these sorts of shows you think the person must have some idea of what’s going to happen, but I really didn’t.
“I’ve done a few interviews about fundraising with the BBC and ITV before, so it didn’t seem unusual, but then all of a sudden Tom Cruise walks in! It was quite a surreal moment.”
Lloyd, a facilities manager at Bristol University, admits that he hasn’t actually seen many of Tom’s films, apart from Top Gun and its sequel, but said the star was “really lovely”.
He said: “We spoke for about 15 minutes after the cameras went away, with his sister and his nephew as well.
“He said the reason he liked my story was that it turned a negative or sad story to a positive outcome – he believes how healthy or important it is to see opportunities or ways to improve in adversity, that bad things happen but it’s how you react to it that makes you who you are.”
Tom said: “I’ve done a lot of wild things and stunts, but when I heard about Lloyd’s adventure, I just thought – I’ve gotta meet this guy.”
He posed for a picture with Lloyd and his wife Alexa, telling Lloyd: “It’s wonderful, what you’ve done.”
The actor and producer invited Lloyd to the royal premiere in London of his latest film, Digger.Lloyd took his friend Joe Humphreys, from Frampton Cotterell, who joined him in some of his fundraising challenges, and they posed for a selfie with Tom on the red carpet.
Lloyd, aged 30, has been fundraising for Jessie May since he was six years old, and is now an ambassador for the charity.
His twin cousins Francesca and Josephine Kembrey, of Coalpit Heath, were diagnosed with Sanfilippo disease type A, a rare and fatal genetic condition, when they were aged four, just after Lloyd was born.
Jessie May nurses were a fixture of family life before the twins died, in 2006 and 2009, and their parents Julie and Chris Kembrey have continued to support the charity, with Julie setting up a group for bereaved parents.
In 2023, supported by a group of between four and 15 friends, Lloyd took on a series of 15 extreme fundraising challenges including a 31-mile ice skating ultramarathon on a frozen lake in Finland, an Everest climbing challenge at UWE, canoeing the length of the River Wye, a swim relay over the distance of the English Channel in Cromhall Quarry, Sodbury Slog and Tough Mudder cross-country races and a three-day, 94‑mile Jurassic Coast walk.
For more information about fundraising for Jessie May visit jessiemay.org.uk/support-us.