The 'Doctor Who' star tries to comfort a nine-year-old autistic boy who just lost his grandma, telling the boy, 'Sometimes sad things happen to us,' while in character.
- Nov 10, 2014
AceShowbiz - Peter Capaldi has sent a video message to a young autistic fan named Thomas who just lost his grandmother. In a short clip uploaded to YouTube by Thomas' father Ross Goodall, Capaldi tries to comfort the boy while in his "Doctor Who" character.
"Thank you very much for your letter. I really enjoyed getting it," Capaldi says in the video, referring to a letter from Thomas he sent in October to wish him good luck with the new role. "Because you see, when Clara and I are traveling around in time and space, sometimes bad things happen to us."
"And you know what, Thomas? Sometimes sad things happen to us too. So, it's nice to know that there's somebody like you out there who's on our side. And you should know that we're on your side too," he continues. "So you look after yourself, and take care, and be happy."
Speaking to The Guardian, the boy's father shared that the video encouraged the boy to go to his grandma's funeral. "When he said 'sometimes sad things happen,' it was as though he was mentioning it (the bereavement) without mentioning it," he said.
"Thomas only sees black and white - there is no grey area - and he has taken it to mean that you can be happy, even though sad things happen. That was when he decided that he wanted to go to the funeral. Up until then, he didn't want anything to do with it but he was even comforting his sister. He was a different child. Normally, anything out of his comfort zone comes with consequences," he explained further.
"It was the first time he had smiled since his nan passed away. The only communication we had got until then was when he got upset and got angry," he added.
