Lumley set for heroine's welcome

12 April 2012

Joanna Lumley is set to be greeted as a heroine by thousands of Gurkhas and their families in Nepal.

The actress, who played a pivotal role in a campaign to allow those who fought for Britain to settle here, said she felt "humbled" to be travelling to Nepal as she boarded a flight from London Heathrow Airport on Saturday night.

Lumley, whose late father was an officer in the Gurkha regiment, said a great injustice had been righted when the Government finally relented in May and said all Gurkha veterans with four years' service would be allowed to move to the UK.

Speaking from Heathrow before her departure, Lumley said: "It's thrilling, it really is. We were met by the most wonderful group of Gurkhas outside Terminal Three, with silk scarves and bunches of flowers.

"It's just incredible. I've never been to Nepal before and this is really going to be just stunning.

"I feel so humbled by the fact I'm going to meet so many ex-Gurkhas and their families and see where they are and how they live. Just to be in that country is such a privilege. I don't think it can be anything other than wonderful."

Lumley and Gurkha Justice campaigner Peter Carroll, who she is travelling with, are expected to be met by large crowds when they arrive at Kathmandu.

Mr Carroll, a Folkestone councillor, said: "I understand there will be a huge, huge reception at the airport. It's almost like a head of state visiting."

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in