It was the one moment to rule them all.
A British man got the best birthday present ever when he and his friends participated in a “Lord of the Rings”-themed pub crawl and ran into Sir Ian McKellen while walking on the street.
In the now-viral Tiktok — which was posted earlier this month and has been viewed 3.5 million times — 22-year-old Ben Coyles can be seen chatting and holding hands with the 83-year-old actor while dressed as Gandalf the Grey before snapping a picture with the grinning star.
McKellen is well known for portraying the iconic wizard in all three “Lord of the Rings” films as well as in the subsequent spinoff series ” The Hobbit.”
The Post reached out to Coyles and McKellen for comment.
“For your mate’s 22nd he dressed as Gandalf and bumped into THE Ian McKellen,” read the video on-screen text.
The video then panned around to Coyles’ face where the man is still in a state of shock over the chance encounter.
Coyles’ interaction with the legendary actor comes a few months after Warner Brothers announced that they plan on releasing more “Lord of the Rings” films but have yet to give any details regarding a release date or cast.
“It was such a shock but also a beautiful and magical moment,” said Coyles’ friend Scarlet Learmonth to the Lancashire Telegraph. “I am so unbelievably happy for Ben and to be part of this exciting occurrence.”
Learmonth, 21, said it was an “utter shock” to her that the video — which she posted — blew up the way it did.
“I posted the video just to share with my friends, with no expectations … I never anticipated the extent of attention but I am just so pleased to be able to share such a magical experience.”
According to the 21-year-old, the chance encounter was the best thing that could happen to her friend as Coyles and his girlfriend had recently begun raising money for a charity that supports people with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).
ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a “disease that affects the nerve cells that make muscles work in both the upper and lower parts of the body,” reports the CDC. “This disease makes the nerve cells stop working and die. The nerves lose the ability to trigger specific muscles, which causes the muscles to become weak and leads to paralysis.”
The CDC reported in 2017 that the US had nearly 32,000 cases of ALS.
Another friend present said he didn’t initially believe it was actually the actor.
“We were on the penultimate pub on the pub crawl and, as we’re walking there, someone comes up behind me and asks if he’d like our Gandalf to meet the real Gandalf,” recalled Felix Spencer. “I assumed it was someone just joking around but when I turn around to talk to him he gestures towards his friend.”
“It takes me a while to realize at first but then I see that it is in fact, Ian McKellen,” continued Spencer. “I only spoke to him briefly but he was very polite and kind and definitely excited to see that people were dressing up as characters from a film he really enjoyed making.”
Several users on TikTok also expressed their joy at the interaction.
“That’s my boyf!! He’s over the moon about this,” commented Coyles’ girlfriend, Angel.
“Are you HOLDING HANDS with SIR IAN MCKELLEN,” gushed a second person.
“You’re friend’s face is a picture of wonderment and awe,” stated a third person. “He’s one of the famous people that you would have best night down the pub with I think.”
“I just know that made his day as much as it made ours,” stated a fourth user.