Coronavirus: James Corden admits ‘anxiety and sadness’ over pandemic

Presenter and actor urged viewers to reach out to people they think could be suffering

James Corden joined the Late Late Show in 2015. Getty

The British television host and actor James Corden said he was “overwhelmed with sadness” by the coronavirus pandemic.

Corden, who was presenting a special edition of the Late Late Show from his house in Los Angeles, admitted that he has found it tougher than he ever thought he would.

Talking to friends and family had made him feel better, he said, and recommended that reaching out to people who might be struggling was “pretty much the best thing” anyone could do.

Corden moved to the US in 2015 to host the popular American late-night talk show on CBS, which is now on hiatus as Covid-19 spreads across North America.

“I’ve found myself having these incredible spikes of anxiety and sadness when I’ve allowed myself to think about my home back in England, or my friends, or the people I love,” he said, as he closed the broadcast from his garage.

“You feel so out of control in it all. It feels so beyond our comprehension, all of it, that I’ve found I just get sort of overwhelmed with sadness in it all really.”

The show featured a number of singers performing from their homes, the magician David Blaine, and the US comedian and actor Will Ferrell, who urged people to wash their hands.

"The truth is what I’ve realised is it’s OK right now, it’s all right to feel a bit sad,” Corden said. “It's OK to feel anxious. The best thing we can all do is kind of breathe through that and put our minds in a positive place and think: ‘What can I do to help someone else who might be feeling like this?’ And just me talking to you tonight has made me feel a bit lighter."