Residents of Oldham, Greater Manchester, have been left bemused after the council commissioned a coronavirus safety video from The Inbetweenersstar James Buckley.
Buckley, who is best known for playing Jay on the popular E4 sitcom, appears to have recorded the message for personalised celebrity video messaging site Cameo.
“Hello residents of Oldham,” he says. “How’s it going? Oldham Council, for some reason, have decided to trust me in giving you this quite serious message.
“Here’s a coronavirus guidelines reminder to Oldham residents: no visitors at home, don’t meet anyone you don’t live with in indoor venues, no care home visits, take extra care if you have shielded, maintain social distancing. It is tricky, it is complicated, we do keep getting told different things a lot of the time – just stay safe.”
Oldham Council has stated that the video cost £34 and is “a small part of a much wider campaign to ensure people are complying with coronavirus guidance”.
The reaction to the video on Twitter was largely one of bafflement, with one user commenting on how “weird and uncomfortable” Buckley appeared to be delivering the message.
Another wrote: ”Unfortunately I really don’t think that people who have been breaking the rules for a while are going to pay any attention to this. I really hope I’m wrong though.”
An increasing number of celebrities have been offering bespoke video messages on Cameo.
It was revealed recently that Buckley has earned more than £100,000 in three months recording videos for Inbetweeners fans on the service.
Last month, Carole Baskin (of Tiger King fame) was tricked into giving a shout out to paedophiles Jimmy Savile and Rolf Harris as part of a prank by Australian comedian Tom Armstrong.
