Thousands queue as Twickenham Rugby Stadium offers Covid vaccine for anyone over 18
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
This article contains affiliate links. We may earn a small commission on items purchased through this article, but that does not affect our editorial judgement.
Thousands of people descended on Twickenham Rugby Stadium as it opened up slots for the Covid-19 vaccine to anyone over the age of 18
11,000 people received their jabs at the major walk-in vaccine centre on Monday (31 May) after slots were made available to those in the local area who had not yet been vaccinated.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdDubbed Let’s Tackle Covid, the event hoped to boost the number of vaccinations as cases of the Indian coronavirus variant surge in Hounslow, west London.


Young people turned out in droves
Currently, people aged 30 and over are being called up for vaccination across England, but event organisers began offering up the jabs to all adults on Monday afternoon.
From around 2.30pm, anyone over the age of 18 could go to the stadium to receive a jab as the centre did not want any of the vaccine to be wasted.
More than 100 vaccinators, including a mixture of GPs and nurses, were on duty to hand out the jabs.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad

Opening up the centre to all adults prompted huge queues to form around the venue as young people turned out in droves to receive their first dose of the Pfizer vaccine.
Kira Lewis, 21, travelled from Hampstead Heath in north London with her partner, Nathan Burns, 24, to get her jab after seeing it was available on Twitter.
The King’s College graduate, who now works at Labour First, said: “We came from the other side of London for it, as it’s worth the opportunity.
“Despite seeing the huge queue that is snaking around the stadium people are still keen to join, with some running to get to the back.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad

“We want to help protect others and it’s maddening to see the government say we won’t want it. I want it so I can feel safer visiting my family and at work when I’m around people who can’t get vaccinated for medical reasons.
“It felt like we either get it today or potentially wait months for the next opportunity.
“I hate needles. But it’ll have to be done sooner or later and getting the vaccine is definitely for the best. I had coronavirus at Christmas and it was horrible. It’s better to avoid it again or passing it on.”
Scotland international rugby union player Rory Hutchinson was also among those who queued up to get vaccinated.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdThe 25-year-old Northampton Saints player said “for me it is the right thing to do and that is why I am here today”.
He added: “It was a really smooth process. I thought they were very professional. It was easy to find. I walked straight in and got my vaccine done. Then just had to wait a short while to make sure I was OK.
“I think we have been through a really tough time recently and hopefully we are on the mend now. I am just doing what I can to support that.”
An ‘amazing’ response
The event was organised in a short space of time by the local NHS trust in partnership with Hounslow Council, and supported by England’s Rugby Football Union (RFU).
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdThe gates closed at 6.45pm with organisers saying thousands had been vaccinated, and the response had been “amazing”.
Dr Genevieve Small, a Harrow GP and the clinical lead for the north west London vaccination programme, said the event had been “something quite powerful” for a range of people.
She explained: “We have been able to provide this facility on the day for people who perhaps knew they were allowed to get the vaccine but had not come around to sorting it out, or who have just been more spontaneous, or who had previously questions about the programme and now feel ready to come forward for the vaccination.
“There is, of course, a want (or a need) to make sure we are protecting the areas that are seeing more cases of the new variant.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“We have been given the opportunity (to do this). We have been given the vaccine and we have gone for it.”
We want to hear from you: let us know what you think about this story and be part of the debate in our comments section below
A message from the editor:
Thank you for reading. NationalWorld is a new national news brand, produced by a team of journalists, editors, video producers and designers who live and work across the UK. Find out more about who’s who in the team, and our editorial values. We want to start a community among our readers, so please follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and keep the conversation going.
Comment Guidelines
National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.