An actor and stunt coordinator who injured his leg has reached his £25,000 fundraising target for treatment with the help of star and friend Russell Crowe.
Charlie Allan, 61, from the Scottish Borders, teaches and performs combat in film and television, having worked with Crowe on Gladiator as well as Robin Hood.
The pair became good friends and the Australian leading man even gave Mr Allan a speaking part once.
But in August this year Mr Allan injured his leg while building an access platform to his gym, resulting in an arterial thrombosis diagnosis (where a blood clot develops in an artery).
A previous injury prevented him from having a vein grafted from his right leg but a procedure known as an Endovascular Thrombectomy could see Mr Allan on the road to recovery.
The procedure, which the combat expert is hoping to have in Europe, comes with costs amounting to around 25,000 euros, prompting the GoFundMe appeal.
Mr Allan asked Crowe to share the fundraiser but joked the Gladiator star went “against my wishes” when he donated £5,000 as well.
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.
— Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) November 23, 2024
We also worked together on Robin Hood. He is a great bloke & a good friend. https://t.co/Wd2jCJ17H7
He told the PA news agency: “Yeah it was a big surprise because I asked him not to (donate)!
“He’s been kind to me in so many ways.
“I never ask Russell for anything.
“I get inundated with people throwing scripts at me wanting me to ask Russell to read the script – which I don’t do – and I guess that’s why we are friends.
“Because I respect his privacy and I respect him as a friend.
“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.
“I’m very humbled, it means everything to me. The level of support and love has just been quite overwhelming to be honest.”
Crowe shared the fundraiser on X with 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.
“We also worked together on Robin Hood. He is a great bloke & a good friend.”
The fundraising page, set up by friends Randy Dedrickson and Stewart Flora, reads: “Let’s unite to help restore not only Charlie’s health but also his spirit and the joy of being with his family and contributing to the wider community.
“Thank you for considering this opportunity to make a meaningful impact on Charlie’s life.”
Mr Allan, who has a martial arts background, said he got involved in film and television combat around 30 years ago when he noticed people “messing around” in the background of movies.
He said he had to be “talked-into” the fundraiser initially.
First thing I want to do is run around with my little boy
Once he has recovered he is looking forward to going back to work and playing with his son.
“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,” he said.
“Randy talked me into (the fundraiser), and between him and my wife they kicked it off and started getting things rolling. Thankfully it came together because the only other alternative was credit card or loan.
“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.
“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.”
To find out more, visit www.gofundme.com/f/charlie-allan-and-his-family.
