A man who is hoping to set a new world record as the first person to complete a marathon in every city in the UK consecutively is running through Oxford today.
Josh Patterson is running 76 marathons in 76 days, hoping to raise £1million for suicide prevention charity Samaritans.
His journey has covered all the cities in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.
Today he will run around the Oxford parks, Jericho to Wolvercote canal, Godstow to Binsey, along Port Meadow to Osney, up the river to Grandpont, University Parks, Christ Church, High Street and along to South Parks.
He is inviting the public to join him for a run or to say hello and help spread the word.
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The 33-year-old rose to fame as 'JP' on Made In Chelsea - a show chronicling the lives of affluent young people living in south-west London.
But behind-the-scenes, Joshua was battling with terrible bouts of depression and crippling anxiety.
Mr Patterson said: "Having struggled with mental health myself to the point I thought about ending my life, I was fortunate enough to get support from several incredible professionals, my family, and friends.
"I’m very aware though, not everyone is as lucky. My life has changed immeasurably since that moment and I’m now in a place where I want to show others they are not alone, and things can and will get better.
"Through testing my own limits with endurance sport, I have built strength, resilience, and best of all, a community I love."
The runner, who already holds two world records, said: "Setting myself near impossible challenges has been a vital tool to attract attention and to shine a light on mental health.
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"Whether you are personally struggling or have been impacted by mental health through a loved one, I hope that this mammoth challenge will inspire people to reach out, speak out, and know they are not alone."
Founded in 1953 by Chad Varah, Samaritans now has over 200 branches and around 22,000 volunteers.
Mr Patterson is running in every city that has a Samaritans base.
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The charity has trained specialists to answer phone calls from people in mentally vulnerable situations.
It responds to around 10,000 calls per day - one call every 10 seconds. The charity states Mr Patterson's efforts will fund 20,000 calls.
Sonya Trivedy, Samaritans executive director for Income, said: “We are incredibly grateful to Josh who will not only be raising money to help Samaritans be there for people struggling to cope, he will also be spreading his message of hope to every city across the UK."
Mr Patterson will complete his challenge in London on Saturday, May 13 where he will be joined by athletes, family and friends and the public to cross the final finishing line.
- For help, call Samaritans for free on 116 123 or visit samaritans.org
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