Dying Star Wars Fan Had His ‘Rogue One’ Wish Granted Days Before Death

A terminally ill Star Wars fan was able to see the unreleased ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’ film just days before his death, after a social media campaign caught the attention of Disney and Lucasfilm.

Neil Hanvey, 36, from Hereford, UK, was told in April this year that he had just six to eight months left to live, meaning he likely wouldn’t live long enough Rogue One when it hit cinemas in December.

After learning that his dying wish was to live long enough to see the film, his wife Andrea and a healthcare assistant at his hospice Amy Duncan organised a campaign to give Neil the chance to see the film.

The #RogueOneWish went viral – even earning a retweet from Luke Skywalker / Mark Hamill himself – and the staff at St Michael’s Hospice shared their support by reworking the lyrics to the Star Wars theme and being extremely cute about it. The video was viewed over 50,000 times.

Neil’s wish was granted a few days ago, with Rogue One director Gareth Edwards ensuring Neil could see the film last Saturday. St Michael’s Hospice thanked him and everyone who supported the campaign via their Facebook page, saying Edwards “did all he could to make Saturday a very special day for Neil.”

Neil died a few days later. “On behalf of all our family we would like to thank everyone who has passed on their condolences following Neil’s death last night,” his wife Andrea said in a statement posted to Facebook. “We would also like to thank the tens of thousands of people who supported the #RogueOneWish campaign. All the messages of love during the past week have given us a great deal of comfort during a very difficult time.

“We would also like to thank everyone at St Michael’s Hospice, especially Amy Duncan, without who #RogueOneWish would not have happened.”

A fundraising page has been set up for St Michael’s Hospice for anyone who would like to donate: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Andrea-Hanvey

This is not the first time Disney and Lucasfilm have granted the wish of a dying Star Wars fan. In November last year, an American with spindle cell carcinoma by the name of Daniel Fleetwood was granted a viewing of Star Wars: The Force Awakens before its December release, after a social media campaign reached even the film’s stars. He passed away the following day.

Photo: Facebook / St. Michael’s Hospice.

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