Holiday island welcomes internet Samaritan

Tom Frankenburg, from Nottingham, received nearly 113,000 hits from around the world and 2,000 emails after he posted a personal video on YouTube inviting people to explain why they should be given the chance to go to Malta.

After considering thousands of entries, he decided to give the trip to a couple known only as Dawn and Stuart.

They applied for the holiday after Stuart spent three months in hospital following an attack near his home last Easter in which he suffered severe head injuries.

Dawn said in an online video: “It was an incredibly awful time you know. You’re sat at the bedside not knowing what the future is going to hold.”

To his surprise, Mr Frankenburg did not have to miss the trip – as This is Malta TV and the Malta Tourism Authority invited him and a friend to enjoy an all-expenses-paid holiday to the island.

Mr Frankenburg, who became a viral video sensation around the world, was greeted at the airport by models in traditional Maltese Ghonnella costumes.

As a guest of the island, he will receive VIP treatment during his stay in recognition of his act of kindness in giving his holiday away to a deserving couple, the Maltese authorities said.