Romesh Ranganathan meets cancer survivor comic Aiden Cowie
Aiden Cowie from Aberdeen, who was diagnosed with cancer at 18 years-old, met his comedy hero Romesh Ranganathan to ask him for tips and advice on his budding stand-up career - and ended up being offered the opportunity of a lifetime.
Ranganathan, a long-term supporter of the Teenage Cancer Trust charity, offered Aiden, now 26, the chance to open a show for him after the pair met to talk about comedy and cancer.
A short film, released today by Teenage Cancer Trust, captures the moment the offer was made, and sees Aiden explain to Romesh how he used humour to cope with the trauma of being diagnosed with a rare cancer that only gave him a 1 in 20 chance of survival, and which saw him lose an eye, cheekbone, teeth, and part of his jaw.
Despite struggling with his changed appearance, after his treatment was completed, he decided to try stand-up for the first time, and is now regular on the comedy circuit in his home city of Aberdeen.
Aiden explains: "The tumour in my face was the size of a man's fist. It was wrapped round the nerves on my right eye, and I needed 32 hours of surgery over seven days. A lot of what got me through the surgery, then radiotherapy and chemo was cracking jokes and having a laugh about everything. It was my way of coping. Stand-up was always something I wanted to do but never had the guts to do. But I thought, if I can come through all that, I can do anything."
In the film Romesh responds to Aiden's story with a heartfelt message: "You've been through one of the most difficult things that anyone can go through. What has comedy got to be afraid of? Nothing, right?"
Romesh then invites Aiden to open a show for him, and says: "I'm going to make this offer to you... I'm about to start doing work in progress shows, I'd love you to come and open for me. If you want to come and do a couple of dates, it'd be a cool thing to just do a gig together."
In the film, Aiden accepts Romesh's offer enthusiastically.
Aiden later said: "Meeting Romesh was everything I hoped it would be. He's been my hero for years and it was so surreal to get to chat to him and tell him about my experience. I never expected that he would invite me to open for him at a comedy gig, I was so blown away and overwhelmed."
Romesh met Aiden, who was supported by Teenage Cancer Trust throughout his ordeal, ahead of running the London Marathon, which takes place this Sunday. The A League Of Their Own host is aiming to raise £115,000 for Teenage Cancer Trust, which provides specialist nursing care and youth support to young people like Aiden, via a JustGiving page
On Teenage Cancer Trust's support, Aiden said: "My specialist nurses Amanda and Dianne helped me so much, I don't know what I would've done without them. After my surgery they went above-and-beyond to make sure things were as easy as possible for me.
"No ask was too big. There was always something they could do to help me. Without Amanda and Dianne, there's no way I would be where I am now."
Speaking about meeting Aiden, Romesh said: "It was so great to meet Aiden, he's such a top lad and it's amazing to see him doing so well with his comedy. It'll be an honour if he opens a show for me and I can't wait to see where his career takes him.
"I've had the privilege of visiting some of the charity's specialist units, and to hear once more about the support they offer to young people, like Aiden, reminds you of how valuable their services are. The support really is life changing."
A separate short film starring Aiden was also screened at the Royal Albert Hall on Tuesday 25 March, as part of Teenage Cancer Trust's 'a night of comedy' fundraiser. The film sees Aiden and his mum Denise describe the devastating impact of Aiden's diagnosis on their lives, and how support from Teenage Cancer Trust helped them cope. After the film was shown, Aiden took centre stage to thank the audience for coming and had the opportunity to test out a couple of his own jokes.
Kate Collins, Chief Executive at Teenage Cancer Trust, says: "Today, and every day, seven young people in the UK aged 13-24 will hear the words 'you have cancer'. It's thanks to supporters like Romesh, and the 350 others running the London Marathon in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust, that we can continue to be there for every young person who needs us."
Pascale Harvie from JustGiving comments: "Romesh's dedication to supporting Teenage Cancer Trust is truly commendable. Not only is he taking on the physical challenge of running the London Marathon for the second consecutive year, he is also using his massive platform to raise vital awareness and funds. We wish Romesh the very best of luck at this year's race."