Diasporans surprise Julius Agwu by organising collection at his London show to pay for his recent surgery

HUNDREDS of Nigerians in the UK surprised Nollywood legend Julius Agwu yesterday when they organised an emergency contribution for him at his show in London to help cover the costs of his recent surgery to remove a brain tumour.

In 2016, Agwu, survived a near-death experience after it was discovered he had three tumours in his brain, with one of them being as large as a golf ball. He underwent successful brain surgery in Houston, Texas, to remove the lumps from his brain on May 12, 2016 and since then has bounced back.

Widely regarded as the father of Nigerian stand-up comedy, Agwu was back in the UK over the weekend, organising his now famous show Crack Your Ribs at the Discovery centre in Barking. Organised by veteran London disc jockey DJ Abass, the event featured several other comedian including Wake Gates, Nedu, Josh 2 Funny, Emma O My God, Angel Gabriel, Saco and Gbenga Adeyinka.

For several hours, the entertainers thrilled fans with a wide array of jokes and towards the end of the event, one lady asked to be allowed to speak. To Julius Agwu's surprise,. she picked up the microphone and asked that guests dip their hands into their pockets and contribute towards the cost of the comedian's recovery.

She said: "I am a nurse who works in a doctor's surgery, so I know what it means to recover from what Julius Agwu has just gone through. Despite all his traumas, he still organises events like this, which as we all know are not cheap as he has to pay for the venue and fly and the entertainers over from Nigeria."

Following the emotional plea, hundreds of fans got up and dropped their contributions into a basket, leaving Agwu bewildered and surprised. He later thanked them all for the gestured as did DJ Abass, with the two of them posing for pictures with the fans after the show.