Lumley visits Cranbrook to thank mystery woman

TELEVISION star Joanna Lumley visited Cranbrook to meet the woman who proved instrumental in gaining justice for the Gurkhas.

Crowds of onlookers gathered in the High Street today to witness the moment the Absolutely Fabulous star met Annie Watsham.

Annie was the woman who tipped off Gurkha campaigners that Joanna Lumley's father had served with the regiment – and ultimately led to the Government changing the law.

And Ms Lumley warmly thanked her for setting the wheels in motion for the momentous development in the campaign.

Annie had approached Peter Carroll, while collecting signatures in Cranbrook High Street, to say that actress Ms Lumley had a personal connection to the cause and might be worth contacting.

Mr Carroll said: "If she hadn't mentioned Joanna's name to me maybe she would never have got involved and the whole campaign would have had a completely different outcome.

"I was standing by the Tourist Information Centre collecting signatures and this woman told me to try Joanna, as her dad had served in the Gurkhas for 30 years.

"I sent off a few emails and got a call from Joanna a few weeks later."

A High Court judge ruled in October that allowing only Gurkhas retiring after 1997 to stay in the UK was unlawful.

The Government changed its policy but only to let Gurkhas serving for 20 years or more before 1997 stay.

The campaign gathered momentum and the Government announced two weeks ago that Gurkhas who retired before 1997 can now remain in the UK.

At today's event, one student from Cranbrook School told her friends on the telephone: "It's like a dream, there's so many people down here, you have to come and see this."

For the full story, interviews with people who spoke to Joanna and photographs, read Friday June 26th edition of the Kent and Sussex Courier.