Our Ambassadors

Comedian, writer, actor and radio DJ Paul O’Grady is perhaps best known for his straight-talking glamorous drag alter-ego ‘Lily Savage’.  From humble Irish roots, Paul was born near Liverpool and as an adult migrated down to London where he worked for Camden Council social services for a time.  Lily provided his breakthrough to mainstream media and a great platform to voice his views on LGBT rights.

More recently Paul has become known as a flamboyant and kind-hearted TV presenter not least in his shows ‘For the Love of Dogs’ following the work at Battersea Dog’s Home and his documentary series ‘Paul O’Grady’s Animal Orphans’.  Dogs play a huge part in Paul’s life and his own dogs have joined him on his TV shows and tours.

Paul understands the significance of the bond between people and their dogs and cares deeply about human and animal welfare.  These values reflect everything that StreetVet is about.  We are humbled that he has agreed to work with us as an ambassador to promote a greater understanding of the homeless crisis and the struggles of our clients and their dogs. 

After spending time out and about with the London StreetVet team, Paul said, “When we were filming ‘For the Love of Dogs’ we went out on the streets with StreetVet to see firsthand what they do for the homeless and their pets. I was really impressed with the dedication of the team and want to support them to enable them to reach even more homeless people around the country.”

Clare Balding is an award-winning broadcaster and writer. She became the face of the BBC's racing coverage in 1998, and now works across a wide range of sports for television and radio. She has been a lead presenter for the Olympics, Paralympics, Winter Olympics and Commonwealth Games. For more than twenty years, she has hiked across the countryside for the BBC Radio 4 series Ramblings.
Clare has presented Crufts for many years on both the BBC and C4. She has also hosted Countryfile, Britain's Hidden Heritage, Britain By Bike, A League of Their Own, Have I Got News For You and Good Morning Sunday on Radio 2. She won a special BAFTA in recognition of her work on London 2012 and has won two RTS awards for her presentation.
Her first book My Animals and Other Family went to number 1 in the Sunday Times best-seller list and won Biography of the Year at the National Book Awards. Her latest book, Heroic Animals will be published in October.
She has just been announced as the new President of the Rugby Football League.

Until recently, Clare and her wife Alice shared their home with their beloved Tibetan Terrier, Archie.  His death, at the age of 15, has left a dog-shaped hole in their lives.  Balding is currently involved in the Virtual Big Dog Walk (www.bigdogwalk/worldwalk) and has nominated StreetVet as her chosen charity. She has also very kindly donated her fee from a recent filming project to StreetVet. Clare is looking forward to join a StreetVet outreach to appreciate first hand what is involved.

We are thrilled to introduce our two new StreetVet ambassadors:  comedian, presenter, writer and actor Sue Perkins and award winning writer and presenter Anna Richardson.

When Sue and Anna heard about StreetVet, they were intrigued by the concept and soon became keen to get involved.  Sue and Anna enjoy being surrounded by their own four-legged companions and understand the benefits of good veterinary care to both pet and owner.  Our StreetVet volunteers treat and advise on veterinary issues but we also listen to the owner and help them when we can too.  Sometimes just knowing that their pet is healthy is often a huge boost to the owner’s wellbeing.   This approach resonated with Sue and Anna who already actively support several mental health and homeless charities.

“Sue and Anna are both dedicated animal lovers and have first-hand experience of how powerful and valuable the human-animal bond can be. They have a long history of engagement with charitable causes and are passionate about homelessness, mental health and animal welfare. Their universal appeal and broad reach make them the perfect people to help spread the StreetVet word and we couldn’t be more excited to have them on board.’ – Dr Sam Joseph, StreetVet Co-Founder

StreetVet feel hugely privileged to have the endorsement of Sue and Anna and are proud to welcome these strong and charismatic ambassadors into the StreetVet community.  We look forward to working with them both for many years to come.

“We are delighted to have been named as ambassadors for this remarkable charity which ensures that the companion animals of those experiencing homelessness get the vital veterinary care that they need and deserve.”    – Sue Perkins and Anna Richardson

We are thrilled to introduce our two new StreetVet ambassadors:  comedian, presenter, writer and actor Sue Perkins and award winning writer and presenter Anna Richardson.

When Sue and Anna heard about StreetVet, they were intrigued by the concept and soon became keen to get involved.  Sue and Anna enjoy being surrounded by their own four-legged companions and understand the benefits of good veterinary care to both pet and owner.  Our StreetVet volunteers treat and advise on veterinary issues but we also listen to the owner and help them when we can too.  Sometimes just knowing that their pet is healthy is often a huge boost to the owner’s wellbeing.   This approach resonated with Sue and Anna who already actively support several mental health and homeless charities.

“Sue and Anna are both dedicated animal lovers and have first-hand experience of how powerful and valuable the human-animal bond can be. They have a long history of engagement with charitable causes and are passionate about homelessness, mental health and animal welfare. Their universal appeal and broad reach make them the perfect people to help spread the StreetVet word and we couldn’t be more excited to have them on board.’ – Dr Sam Joseph, StreetVet Co-Founder

StreetVet feel hugely privileged to have the endorsement of Sue and Anna and are proud to welcome these strong and charismatic ambassadors into the StreetVet community.  We look forward to working with them both for many years to come.

“We are delighted to have been named as ambassadors for this remarkable charity which ensures that the companion animals of those experiencing homelessness get the vital veterinary care that they need and deserve.”    – Sue Perkins and Anna Richardson

‘Rory the Vet’ is a practicing veterinary surgeon now based in London after graduating from the Royal Veterinary College in 2015.  From the outset he has balanced his clinical career with media work and managing his hugely popular Instagram account (@rorythevet). Rory features alongside James on the CBBC show ‘The Pets Factor’ and has also appeared on many other well known BBC, ITV and Channel 5 shows.  Rory has been an active StreetVet volunteer since our Clapham outreach station was set up and supports the charity whole heartedly.

Rory says, “I first heard about StreetVet through my friends in the veterinary industry. Back then it was a small group of volunteers in a few locations in London. Over the past few years I have been amazed by the growth and support for the charity and I couldn’t be more honoured to be a part of it. Being announced as an ambassador for StreetVet, alongside my friend and colleague James Greenwood, is absolutely amazing. Having seen the work of the volunteers and the incredible support for the vulnerable and homeless, I am such a huge supporter and I couldn’t be happier to be involved. I look forward to helping steer StreetVet’s growth and providing as much support as I can.”

When Rory isn’t on screen, in the clinic, or helping out at Clapham, he is at home with his three legged cat ‘Tripod’.

Dr James Greenwood is a practicing small animal vet.  Originally from Yorkshire, James qualified from Bristol University in 2007 and since then has worked in both equine and small animal practice, although now his work predominantly covers small animal species.

James knows all too well the stressors of being a vet and for the past six years he has developed a deep passion for ceramics, both making and collecting work.

This brought him the opportunity to appear on BBC Two’s ‘The Great Pottery Throwdown’ which has since led onto further television work, including the hit CBBC series ‘The Pets Factor’, which is aimed at teaching children the importance of pet care and the work of a veterinarian.

He writes for various magazine publications, has worked with numerous animal charities and has appeared across a number of veterinary related podcasts.

James is absolutely thrilled to act as ambassador for Streetvet, who in his words, “are the true guardians of animal welfare for those pets who need them most.”

“For me, Streetvet is a fantastic opportunity for vets to ‘give back’ to their local community. The reward that can come from utilising the veterinary degree in its simplest form – to help the animals that need us the most – gives recognition to how important vets are as a profession to act as the chief guardians of animal welfare.  

Having witnessed how fast Streetvet has grown in such a relatively short space of time, it demonstrates how willing vets are to volunteer their time to a cause they feel is so worthwhile but it also shows how vitally important a service like Streetvet is to those who need it.”