‘Did Boris Johnson watch Mr Bean?’: Twitter reacts to Matt Hancock saying Contagion inspired UK vaccine strategy

Matt Damon movie acted as warning to health secretary about global scramble to get hold of vaccines

Health Secretary Matt Hancock has revealed the Hollywood film Contagion inspired his strategy on the UK’s coronavirus vaccination programme – and Twitter has had a field day.

The senior cabinet minister said the movie starring Matt Damon – which focuses on the international struggle to contain a deadly virus – helped prepare him for the global scramble to get hold of vaccines.  

Asked by LBC about watching Contagion, Hancock said: “In the film, it shows that the moment of highest stress around the vaccine programme is not before its rolled out – when the scientists and manufacturers work together at pace – it’s afterwards when there is a huge row of the order of priority.”

Many Twitter users have not been able to resist cracking jokes about the comment, with one person writing: “I’m imagining matt hancock watching contagion during his xmas break and saying ‘damn my life a movie’.”

Read more - Matt Hancock admits Hollywood film Contagion helped shape his vaccine response

Another added: “So, Matt Hancock got the idea for the vaccine strategy from a Matt Damon film. Did the government derive their policy on feeding children from Oliver!?”

Hancock said the film wasn’t his “primary source of advice” on the vaccine strategy.

Earlier on Wednesday, Hancock said Covid-19 vaccine supply “slow downs” were behind the daily fluctuations in jab numbers.