Meet winemaker with striking similarity to Tom Cruise

A Derbyshire winemaker has gone viral because of his similarity to Hollywood superstar Tom Cruise.

Kieron Atkinson, founder of the the English Wine Project based at Renishaw Hall, Derbyshire, earned himself the nickname "Tom Booze" after people highlighted his resemblance to the star on a social media video about his wine.

The 46-year-old told BBC Radio Derby comparisons to the A-lister started after someone commented on the post, saying "I did not know Tom Cruise made wine in Derbyshire".

"It is really fun and genuinely quite funny that people think you look like someone famous", said Mr Atkinson.

The winemaker, from Darley Abbey, added that people were asking him if he was used as a stunt double for Tom Cruise after he was spotted filming at Middleton Mine in March.

Similar to the Top Gun star himself, Mr Atkinson has been labelled a "real life action man", as he served in Afghanistan and Iraq as a Captain in the Light Dragoons regiment of the British Army.

After his nine-year service in the Army, Mr Atkinson completed a wine production course in 2010 and became technical advisor for the UK branch of the Rothschilds.

By June 2011 the winemaker then took over the vineyard at Renishaw Hall in North Derbyshire and also runs a winery in Darley Abbey.

Mr Atkinson's own wine brand, Mills and Hills, is involved with wine distributors Naked Wines, which posted the viral video on its social media pages.

When asked if he sees the similarity, Mr Atkinson said: "Personally not really, but it is getting to a stage where I am getting stopped being told I look like him at work or when I am out with family.

"There are definitely worse people I could look like, so I'll take Tom Cruise", said Mr Atkinson.

"I'm a fan of his movies, so I am very flattered with the comparison."

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