Russell Crowe Assists Stuntman in Reaching £25,000 Surgery Fundraising Goal

A stunt co-ordinator and actor, Charlie Allan, has successfully met his £25,000 fundraising goal for medical treatment following a leg injury, with assistance from his friend Russell Crowe. Mr. Allan, who hails from the Scottish Borders, is involved in teaching and performing combat for film and television productions. His friendship with the Australian movie star developed through their collaboration on action films such as Gladiator and Robin Hood. The 61-year-old sustained a leg injury in August while constructing an access platform for his gym, resulting in a severe arterial thrombosis, characterized by a blood clot forming in an artery. Due to a prior injury, a vein graft from his right leg was not feasible; however, an endovascular thrombectomy procedure was identified as a potential solution. This specific procedure is unavailable within the UK and carries a cost exceeding £20,000. Speaking on BBC Radio’s Good Morning Scotland programme, Mr. Allan described how his injury occurred when his leg gave way after stepping off the building platform. He stated, “I got some really crazy awful crunches, the type you don’t want to hear when you fall.” He continued, “I pushed through and less than a week later I got some severe pain in my leg so I went to A&E.” “One thing led to another and I ended up in Hairmyres (Hospital) up in East Kilbride and discovered I had clotting behind the knee – so it’s shut off the circulation in my lower leg.” The fundraising initiative was established by two of his friends, a decision he initially had to be “talked into,” according to Mr. Allan. Mr. Allan requested that Crowe promote the fundraiser, but humorously noted that the Gladiator star acted “against my wishes” by also contributing £5,000. He informed the PA news agency, stating, “Yeah it was a big surprise because I asked him not to.” Mr. Allan added, “He’s been kind to me in so many ways. I never ask Russell for anything.” He further explained, “I’ve never pressured him for anything, so against my wishes he donated anyway but he also did what I asked him to do and put it out there on his X account.” Concluding his remarks, he said, “I’m very humbled, it means everything to me. The level of support and love has just been quite overwhelming to be honest.” Mr. Allan achieved his fundraising goal within a week of its launch. Among the contributors were Outlander actor Sam Heughan, and Terri and Robert Irwin, who are the wife and son of the deceased Australian zookeeper Steve Irwin. The stuntman stated that the required treatment is not accessible in the UK, necessitating travel to Europe. He elaborated, “They send something down into your arteries and it scours out all the clotting.” He added, “They put a filter in your heart to stop anything backwashing into your heart and causing further complications. It’s quite a simple thing but it’s very costly.” Crowe promoted the fundraiser on his X account, previously known as Twitter, including the message: “If you ever saw the first Gladiator, the barbarian leader who tosses the severed head of a Roman emissary back towards the Roman line in a display of defiance, is Charlie Allan.” His message continued, “We also worked together on Robin Hood. He is a great bloke and a good friend.” A follow-up to the initial Gladiator film was released earlier this month, 24 years after director Ridley Scott’s acclaimed epic first appeared. Mr. Allan, possessing a background in martial arts, indicated that he entered the field of film and television combat approximately 30 years ago, after observing individuals “messing around” in movie backgrounds. He expressed being “very humbled” by the support received and conveyed gratitude to Crowe for publicizing the fundraiser. “Russell is a really warm character, very caring,” he commented. “He’s one of the most generous guys I’ve ever met in my life. He’s very observant and does a lot to help people, a lot of things you never hear about.” Upon his recovery, he anticipates resuming work and engaging in play with his son. He explained, “I can’t walk far without pain and I certainly can’t run, and then it’s had a compounding effect on my legs because you get weak after you haven’t moved for so many weeks.” “First thing I want to do is run around with my little boy. He’s 16 months now and it’s quite hard to keep up with him,” he shared. He concluded, “I’m just looking to get back to acting because I’ve got a lot of promise on the horizon, so I just want to get back to work again.” Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.