IDRIS ELBA ON EXPOSURE TO VIRUS.
British actor Idris Elba, 47, is careful not to say he contracted coronavirus from Sophie Grégoire Trudeau.
But his “known exposure” to the virus — and subsequent positive test — dates back to March 4 when he was in contact with ‘that person who came up positive,” Elba revealed in a 17-minute video he shared on Twitter on Tuesday night.
March 4 is the date Elba was photographed with Grégoire Trudeau, 44, at a packed WE Day UK charity event in London, where he hugged the prime minister’s wife — before either of them underwent coronavirus testing.
Sophie returned from London and experienced flu-like symptoms, the prime minister’s office said. She tested positive for coronavirus on March 12 and said she was “experiencing uncomfortable symptoms of the virus".
Justin Trudeau remains in isolation — symptom free, he has noted — since Sophie’s test result.
Elba said he had no symptoms before March 4 and immediately isolated himself after receiving the positive result.
“On Friday last week (March 13), I was told that someone I had been in contact with someone had tested positive,” Elba said in March 16 Twitter video.
“I’m on location about to start a film and the news breaks that this person, who is also in the public eye, had tested positive, so it (the test) was definitely something I had to do as I was about to start filming and was around a lot of people.”
He said on March 17 that he has remained symptom-free despite his asthma and explained that he and his wife Sabrina Dhowre, 30, “took the calculated risk” to continue living together.
“Catching coronavirus was definitely not on my bucket list at all,” said Elba, who remains worried about being an asthmatic with the virus.
“Stay positive. Don’t freak out,” said Elba in a video accompanying the Twitter post. His wife, Sabrina, is visible in the background, clearly concerned, and has since undergone testing. The results are pending.
Organizers of WE Day UK, which included Margaret Trudeau as a speaker, have said they contacted anyone at the event who was in direct contact with Grégoire Trudeau.
“Other than Madame Grégoire Trudeau and Mr. Elba, there are no other event participants or guests, to our knowledge, who have tested positive for COVID-19,” the organization said.
It has since cancelled the remaining live WE Day events.