James Corden's Moving Tribute To His Hometown

Following a devastating tragedy in his home city, the comedian and host of the The Late Late Show James Corden paid tribute to London during his Wednesday night episode. Hours after the city faced a devastating terrorist attack that claimed the lives of three victims and injured several others, Corden taped his show. Despite the fact that details around the attack were still unfolding during the filming of Corden's show (and they're still unfolding), Corden still paid a genuinely touching tribute to the victims of the attack, their families, and his hometown of London.

Corden began his statement by briefing viewers on the nature of the attack, and mentioning that no matter what the motive of the attacker was, people lost their lives too soon. "There was a terror attack today in my hometown, the city of London in Westminster," Corden said. "While we’re filming this, it’s still unknown what the motives were. What we do know at this point is that people have lost their lives and many, many more have been injured."

The 38-year-old British comedian continued his statement by reflecting that in cases of tragedy, such as the Westminster Bridge attack, he wishes he could be home to mourn and lend physical support.

"Watching the news today, I felt a really long, long way from home," Corden said on Wednesday's Late Late Show, "When something like that happens in your hometown, you don't have a feeling of being glad that you're so far away. What you feel is that you wish you could be there with loved ones to stand alongside them."

Corden used his show to praise the character of the people of London, and he stressed that no act of terrorism would work to splinter the culture or community from which he came.

"London is a diverse and proud and brilliant city,” Corden said in closing, “and one thing is for sure: If this act of terrorism was supposed to divide the people of London, I know for a fact that all something like this does is bring them closer together as one. Tonight, we send our heartfelt thoughts to everybody in Britain. Stay safe."

Corden's tribute stood in stark contrast to that of the president's son, Donald Trump Jr., who tweeted a criticism of London Mayor Sadiq Khan after the attack. Subsequently, Trump was roundly criticized, including by British MP Wes Streeting, who called him a "disgrace." Khan told CNN, "I'm not going to respond to a tweet from Donald Trump Jr. I've been doing far more important things over the last 24 hours."