Derbyshire wine producer goes viral over his likeness to Tom Cruise

Kieron Atkinson starred in a promotional video for a major wine company and comments poured in likening him to the star of the Mission Impossible film series.

Such was the reaction that Naked Wines made a second video with Kieron – now nicknamed Tom Booze – in which he features with clips of the lookalike celebrity.

Kieron, 46, said: “It’s good fun and there are worse people to be similar looking to. When Tom was filming the Mission Impossible films in Derbyshire, people would say to me on occasions that I looked like Tom a little bit. I wouldn’t ever say that I’ve set myself up to be a Tom Cruise impersonator – I’m a good half a foot taller!”

Tenant farmer at Renishaw Hall where he took over the vineyard in 2011, Kieron is the founder of the English Wine Project and makes his award-winning wine at Darley Abbey. He said: “It’s a pretty big deal to get the wines into Naked Wines and it shows the quality that we’re producing.”

While Tom Cruise has played an action man in movies Kieron has experienced the real deal. He served 10 years with the Light Dragoons, touring to Iraq and Afghanistan.

He returned to university to do a degree in wine making, became a contract wine maker for three years and worked for Rothschild as their technical adviser before taking on the vineyard at Renishaw Hall.