HOLLYWOOD actor Jeremy Irons has become a patron of Oxford mental health charity Restore.

The Brideshead Revisited actor, who lives South Oxfordshire, helped the charity raise a record breaking £30,397 at an auction.

Restore’s chief Lesley Dewhurst said: “We’re thrilled that a giant of stage and screen for so many years is supporting Restore. Jeremy has visited three of Restore’s six groups, spent significant time with service users, and hosted our auction in February that helped to raise so much money for mental health recovery.”

Mr Irons said: “I hope to use my role to get to know Restore even better as they support service users, and tackle the mental health stigma in our community.”