Benedict Cumberbatch says he hopes to take Ukrainian refugees into his home

Actor has been a vocal supporter of Ukraine since Russia invaded the country

Benedict Cumberbatch has said that he hopes to take part in a government scheme to offer Ukrainian refugees a place to live.

The “Homes for Ukraine” initiative will allow members of the public, charities, businesses and community groups to offer accommodation to refugees who don’t have family ties.

“It is a really shocking time to be a European two and a half hours flight away from Ukraine, and it’s something that hangs over us,” Cumberbatch told Sky News on the red carpet of the Baftas on Sunday (13 March).

The Sherlock star was wearing a round badge with the blue and yellow of the Ukrainian flag.

“We all need to do more than wear a badge. We need to donate, we need to pressure our politicians to continue to create some kind of a refugee safety and a haven here for people who are suffering,” he said.

“Everyone needs to do as much as they can... there’s been a record number of people volunteering to take people into their homes, I hope to be part of that myself.”

Find out more about the scheme here.

Most of the refugees fleeing Ukraine have been women and children, because men from 18-60 have stayed behind to fight and are forbidden from leaving the country. Many have already moved to other countries in Europe, mostly to stay with friends and family there.

More than 1.5 million refugees have arrived in Poland since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February, out of a total of around 2.7 million people that the United Nations say have fled so far.

Earlier this week, Cumberbatch held up a Ukrainian flag at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival in solidarity with the country as it is being invaded by Russia.

Benedict Cumberbatch holding up the Ukrainian flag (CraSH/imageSPACE/Shutterstock)

The actor was handed the flag by an audience member at the festival’s Cinema Vanguard Award ceremony.

“Stand united with Ukraine,” he shouted out as he went to leave the stage, before spotting someone holding up the flag to him and reaching out to retrieve it.

Cumberbatch is competing for the leading actor award for his performance in Jane Campion’s western The Power of the Dog, which has the most nods of any film this year, with 12 nominations.

You can follow along with updates on the Russia-Ukraine crisis at The Independent’s live-blog here.

The Independent has a proud history of campaigning for the rights of the most vulnerable, and we first ran our Refugees Welcome campaign during the war in Syria in 2015. Now, as we renew our campaign and launch this petition in the wake of the unfolding Ukrainian crisis, we are calling on the government to go further and faster to ensure help is delivered. To find out more about our Refugees Welcome campaign, click here. To sign the petition click here. If you would like to donate then please click here for our GoFundMe page.