Sir Elton John has made a surprise phone call to a teenager whose viral video about living with a disability left the singer in tears.
Lewis Hine marked his 16th birthday by creating a short video montage explaining he’d undergone 13 surgeries since being diagnosed with a brain tumour at 17 months-old.
While Lewis made the clip to raise awareness about those living with disabilities, he never expected 11 million people to watch the video – including former Watford boss Sir Elton.
Sir Elton John tracked down Lewis after watching his video message about disability
The teen’s mum, Emma Hine, told Sky News she was called up by Sir Elton’s assistant with the Rocket Man himself ringing moments later.
"He [Sir Elton] said with all the bad news in the world, he was so inspired by Lewis’s video and just had to call to thank him," she said.
I've made a video for my 16th birthday today can you help me share it plse look out for @Kid_Ink and @ThaAlumni too! https://t.co/TwEkg1ojGp
— Lewis Hine (@hine_hin) March 17, 2017
"He was amazing and so caring and genuine."
Lewis said he was so surprised by the personal call from the Crocodile Rock singer that he ‘didn’t know what to do’.
"He said he saw the video and it made him cry," he said.
The 16-year-old said he was ‘so happy’ the short clip was helping to encourage a conversation about disability.
"I feel so happy that so many people have taken the time to watch my video and better understand the impact that a disability can have on your life, and how it can stop you doing things you want to do," he said.
Lewis hopes the video will see through his plans to hold The Friend Finder Prom, a special event for teenagers aged 15 to 19 who have missed out on their own prom due to illness, disability or a reason out of their control.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here