Tamer Hassan admits devastating carnage he witnessed after the Turkey earthquake changed him forever as he urges fans to ‘seize every moment’
Tamer Hassan has admitted he was forever changed after witnessing the devastating carnage of the 2023 earthquake in Turkey.
In February that year, a series of earthquakes killed around 55,000 people in Turkey and Syria, the worst earthquakes the region has seen in two decades.
And after hearing the news, the 56-year-old British gangster movie star headed to the country to help the victims of the devastating earthquakes.
Discussing the tragic, even in an interview with LoadedThe Football Factory star urged people to make the most of every moment as he discussed how the earthquake ‘really changed him’.
Tamer explained, “I’m at a stage in my life where I’ve had all the cars and houses and I’m very humbled.
‘I went to Turkey to help during the earthquake and ended up staying there for five months. What I saw, the smell of death, the misery, the sadness, that really changed me.’
Tamer Hassan has said the devastating carnage he witnessed after Turkey’s earthquake changed him forever as he urges fans to ‘seize every moment’
In February 2023, a series of earthquakes killed around 55,000 people in Turkey and Syria, the worst earthquakes the region has experienced in two decades
He added: ‘When you experience that, there is something in you that makes you say, ‘I don’t care about all these material things.’
“So if I can help someone show a movie, have a good meal or get a roof over their head, that’s what it’s all about.”
Urging people to seize every moment, he continued: “Every breath you take could be your last. I’m convinced this roof could fall on me right now.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Tamer revealed how he’s getting into shape in more ways than one as he prepares to play Ibiza legend Tony Pike in a new film.
“We plan to start shooting at the end of February, which means I have an intense weight loss program ahead of me, which I’m not looking forward to,” he explained.
“It was one of Tony’s last wishes in life that I play him on the big screen, and I want to do him justice.”
He added: “You have to practice to be as hardcore as Tony in every way. I gave him his last ever interview and two years ago we talked about the film.’
“I was like, ‘Those boots are really big and could be filled by anyone.’ Irvine Welsh is just updating the script and then we’ll start a 12-week shoot.’
He said: ‘I went to Turkey to help during the earthquake and ended up staying there for five months. What I saw, the smell of death, the misery, the sadness, that really changed me’
Urging people to seize every moment as life is short, he continued: “Every breath you take could be your last. I believe this roof could fall on me right now.”
Famous for its slogan: ‘You can check in, but you can never check out’, Pikes Hotel set the standard for the hedonistic Ibizan lifestyle that to this day is unmatched by any destination on the planet.
“The man (Tony Pike) created Ibiza,” says Tamer. “Even Hugh Hefner used to say Tony Pike was the original Playboy.”
Tamer also admitted that this will be his most challenging role yet as “no one can play Tony like Tony.”
He said: ‘The film is a huge challenge for me because the truth is that no one can play Tony like Tony. There’s only one Tony Pike.’
‘I have many good memories of him. “Everyone used to go to Pike’s and experience something unique from Tony.”
‘I started drinking quite late because I was boxing in my twenties, but I caught up very quickly. I can’t remember the 1930s or 1940s.’
Tamer is now a fellow hotelier and recently purchased London’s Karma Sanctum Soho Hotel with his friend Mark Fuller, and Paul Oakenfold is also a partner.
“When the hotel first opened, everyone was there,” he says. “It was just a cool place to be. I had nothing but crazy nights in the Sanctum for five years, but I put them out of my mind.’
‘I’m very good at ignoring things. I think, “I’m done with this place.” Ten years later I decided to invest in it.’
‘I thought, ‘How the hell did this happen? But I’m here now and I’ve been there for six months and I’ve completely turned it around.’
Elsewhere during the interview, Tamer revealed how he’s getting into shape in more ways than one as he prepares to play Ibiza legend Tony Pike (pictured 2015) in a new film.
He said: ‘We plan to start shooting at the end of February, which means I have an intense weight loss program ahead of me, which I’m not looking forward to’ (pictured last year)
The famous hotel boss, who was dubbed the Hugh Hefner of Ibiza, died in February 2019 at the age of 84 after a battle with cancer (pictured with Freddie Mercury)
Discussing his upcoming plans for the hotel, Tamer added: “We have a film festival planned and people are organizing events. The rooms are full. Sometimes it’s so busy that I can’t get a room and have no place to sit.’
It comes after Tamer fought back tears as he revealed members of his family were lost in the earthquake rubble.
Tamer, a close friend of Danny Dyer and Ray Winstone whose daughter Belle is a former Love Island star, led a campaign to raise £100,000 to help with the humanitarian crisis.
The star tried not to cry as he told Sky News: ‘Family is missing. Because of the cold weather we are not hopeful… we are quite worried. I have no words. We are all devastated. We have lost family. I’m going to Turkey, we’re trying to find a route to the worst affected areas.’
Tamer was born in New Cross, south-east London, but considers Turkey his ‘motherland’.
He used his profile to raise money online ‘to help people in need’ and traveled from Cyprus, where he was staying at the time, to the crisis-hit area.
The boxer turned actor made a big impression in his 30s when he starred in The Football Factory with Danny, then Layer Cake with Daniel Craig and also appeared in Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins. His TV work includes NCIS and Game of Thrones.