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Yes, the big event that has happened for nearly four decades now and involves jogging 26 miles, the equivalent of running from Nottingham to Leicester. I have personally walked from Nottingham to Derby, and that was a challenge in itself!
I saw quite a bit of it last Sunday (shown on 28th April this year because Easter was the previous week), and it is great that it's not all about the elite athletes but also about Mr and Mrs Public raising funds for good causes. Pity that Sir Mo Farrah only reached fifth place, but well done for trying, Sir - no can say that the marathon is elitist for obvious reasons. I think that the golden days were when Liz McColgan and Paula Radcliffe were the focal points in the races, and they made the news if they jogged down to their local postbox (qv) first thing in the morning. A friend of mine was a participant a few years ago, raising money for the Salvation Army as the charity was obviously dear to his heart being brought up with his family in one of their homes.
Plenty of Metropolitan Police officers lining the route, and after so many people being stabbed to death in the capital so far this year, it's not surprising that security is taken into consideration a bit more closely. For a BBC show, the marathon has had so many official sponsors over the years such as Gillette (a close shave); ADT Alarms (er... quite); NutraSweet (during the time when their adverts were all over TV-am ad breaks); Mars (the confectioners, hence the word "Marathon" - renaming it Snickers had put a dampener on it no doubt); Flora margarine, (during its "Richard Wilson" advert era, circa 1996), and now Virgin Money (thanks Sir Richard!) I do recall an advert for Mars around the time when the event were sponsored by them when athletes were wrapped up in what looked to be large Bacofoil sheets with Mars logo on them in order to keep them warm, and perhaps even give them a Mars bar to keep their energy up. Was Lucozade Sport also a sponsor as well?
The mini-marathon seems to serve as a good way of training for when they participate in the mainstream one once they reach the age of 18, although how many make it, I am not sure. I am also not too certain how many "ever presents" there are now - they are probably in single figures these days. The oldest woman was 84, the youngest man was... wait for it... 18!
Sometimes I do think that it can be a publicity stunt for its own sake, even if it has raised up to a billion pounds for charity since it started 38 years ago. I am sure that the runner who was dressed as Big Ben caught many eyes - I actually thought that wouldn't it be brilliant if the clock that he was wearing was an actual working one that actually told the time, instead of a picture of one that had seemed to stop at a certain time. The same as the one dressed as a postbox, making comparisons with that woman who appeared on Blind Date in the late 1980s with a "Captain Sensible" beret on her head. I also saw one dressed as a pint of bitter, but I am certain that he was only on mineral water during the race.
One thing that bothers me is that some participants seem to risk life and limb trying to save other people's lives for charity by risking their own, probably because they haven't trained enough for the event - almost every year I read about runners collapsing and dying from exhaustion and all that, despite the St John Ambulance trying to do the impossible to revive the person involved. It makes you think, "is it worth it?" I am certain that those who are ill would not want others to be ill simply because they want to help them out - the domino effect. It might be a bit selfish, but I would put my own health and safety first before anyone else's if I was to attempt such a fate.
And then you get the "celebrities" - not the professional athletes of course, but the soap stars and their partners raising money for charity, and thankfully, they are mostly incognito along with Mr and Mrs Public taking part. As it's the BBC, they just couldn't resist mentioning EastEnders actors taking part, as well as Barbara Windsor's incumbent husband, Scott Mitchell whose name actually sounds like an EastEnders character in itself! The celebrity side of things make me feel as if I am watching a Reality TV series where one has to call 090... in order to eliminate them, so they can get future contracts thanks to their fame. No, I am not saying that it is socially elitist, but...
And also, I don't really like the way the ordinary members of the public use it as a platform to propose to their "partners" while on route, probably around the 11 mile mark - it's amazing what over 18s can do legally in public these days without getting arrested! Yes, marriage is a great institution (it must be considering that all adults seem to be married these days), and so why not make it memorable and make the proposal during something special such as the London Marathon? Mind you, I don't really see it as a way of life by virtue of how I grew up.
Does anyone watch a six hour stint on Sunday morning when it is on? - or more to the point, has there been anyone on here who has participated in the London Marathon themselves in the past, or any official marathon for that matter? How well did you do if that was the case?
I saw quite a bit of it last Sunday (shown on 28th April this year because Easter was the previous week), and it is great that it's not all about the elite athletes but also about Mr and Mrs Public raising funds for good causes. Pity that Sir Mo Farrah only reached fifth place, but well done for trying, Sir - no can say that the marathon is elitist for obvious reasons. I think that the golden days were when Liz McColgan and Paula Radcliffe were the focal points in the races, and they made the news if they jogged down to their local postbox (qv) first thing in the morning. A friend of mine was a participant a few years ago, raising money for the Salvation Army as the charity was obviously dear to his heart being brought up with his family in one of their homes.
Plenty of Metropolitan Police officers lining the route, and after so many people being stabbed to death in the capital so far this year, it's not surprising that security is taken into consideration a bit more closely. For a BBC show, the marathon has had so many official sponsors over the years such as Gillette (a close shave); ADT Alarms (er... quite); NutraSweet (during the time when their adverts were all over TV-am ad breaks); Mars (the confectioners, hence the word "Marathon" - renaming it Snickers had put a dampener on it no doubt); Flora margarine, (during its "Richard Wilson" advert era, circa 1996), and now Virgin Money (thanks Sir Richard!) I do recall an advert for Mars around the time when the event were sponsored by them when athletes were wrapped up in what looked to be large Bacofoil sheets with Mars logo on them in order to keep them warm, and perhaps even give them a Mars bar to keep their energy up. Was Lucozade Sport also a sponsor as well?
The mini-marathon seems to serve as a good way of training for when they participate in the mainstream one once they reach the age of 18, although how many make it, I am not sure. I am also not too certain how many "ever presents" there are now - they are probably in single figures these days. The oldest woman was 84, the youngest man was... wait for it... 18!
Sometimes I do think that it can be a publicity stunt for its own sake, even if it has raised up to a billion pounds for charity since it started 38 years ago. I am sure that the runner who was dressed as Big Ben caught many eyes - I actually thought that wouldn't it be brilliant if the clock that he was wearing was an actual working one that actually told the time, instead of a picture of one that had seemed to stop at a certain time. The same as the one dressed as a postbox, making comparisons with that woman who appeared on Blind Date in the late 1980s with a "Captain Sensible" beret on her head. I also saw one dressed as a pint of bitter, but I am certain that he was only on mineral water during the race.
One thing that bothers me is that some participants seem to risk life and limb trying to save other people's lives for charity by risking their own, probably because they haven't trained enough for the event - almost every year I read about runners collapsing and dying from exhaustion and all that, despite the St John Ambulance trying to do the impossible to revive the person involved. It makes you think, "is it worth it?" I am certain that those who are ill would not want others to be ill simply because they want to help them out - the domino effect. It might be a bit selfish, but I would put my own health and safety first before anyone else's if I was to attempt such a fate.
And then you get the "celebrities" - not the professional athletes of course, but the soap stars and their partners raising money for charity, and thankfully, they are mostly incognito along with Mr and Mrs Public taking part. As it's the BBC, they just couldn't resist mentioning EastEnders actors taking part, as well as Barbara Windsor's incumbent husband, Scott Mitchell whose name actually sounds like an EastEnders character in itself! The celebrity side of things make me feel as if I am watching a Reality TV series where one has to call 090... in order to eliminate them, so they can get future contracts thanks to their fame. No, I am not saying that it is socially elitist, but...
And also, I don't really like the way the ordinary members of the public use it as a platform to propose to their "partners" while on route, probably around the 11 mile mark - it's amazing what over 18s can do legally in public these days without getting arrested! Yes, marriage is a great institution (it must be considering that all adults seem to be married these days), and so why not make it memorable and make the proposal during something special such as the London Marathon? Mind you, I don't really see it as a way of life by virtue of how I grew up.
Does anyone watch a six hour stint on Sunday morning when it is on? - or more to the point, has there been anyone on here who has participated in the London Marathon themselves in the past, or any official marathon for that matter? How well did you do if that was the case?
I think its become one of the great annual events where genuine athletes run alongside well meaning folk in a bid to raise money for good causes...bless em all! but from the comfort of my armchair 
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