London Marathon 2019 celebrity runners: Chris Evans, Helen Skelton and Eastenders stars running the gruelling route

Watch out for these famous faces as you're cheering from the sidelines 
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The celebs swapped the red carpet and VIP treatment as they took on this year's London Marathon.

A handful of stars joined the 42,000 strong group of runners to tackle the epic 26.2 mile route from Greenwich to Buckingham Palace.

Eight EastEnders stars ran in support of Dementia Revolution, this year's official charity, in a special tribute to Dame Barbara Windsor, with big names from the worlds of TV, radio and sport also in the race.

Here are the famous faces everyone was looking out for on the day:

Veteran: This year marks Chris Evans' fifth London Marathon
Tim P. Whitby/ Getty Images

Evans is an old hand when it comes to the 26.2 mile route: this year marked the Virgin Radio host’s fifth London Marathon.

Charity: The radio host ran in aid of Dementia Revolution as part of a group headed up by Scott Mitchell, whose wife Barbara Windsor has Alzheimer’s.

Hannah Macleod

Tim P. Whitby/ Getty Images

The former Olympic hockey star, who took home a gold medal at the Rio Olympics in 2016, tackled the marathon for the second time, having made her debut last year.

Charity: The sports star was once again raising money for Beat Eating Disorders. Writing in 2018, she said that she chose the charity “because of the number of team mates and close friends within elite sport [she has] seen affected throughout her career.”

Adam Woodyatt​

Soap star: Beale is running as part of Barbara's Revolutionaries
Getty Images

​Best known as EastEnders' Ian Beale, Woodyatt is the soap's longest serving cast member. He previously ran the London Marathon back in 2017, completing the course in seven hours, four minutes and 40 seconds.

C​harity: Woodyatt​​ is one of a handful of EastEnders stars - including Tanya Franks, Natalie Cassidy, Kellie Shirley, Jake Wood and Emma Barton - who ran the marathon as 'Barbara's Revolutionaries,' supporting the Dementia Revolution campaign launched by Windsor, her husband Mitchell and Alzheimer's UK.

Kirsty Gallacher

The former Sky Sports presenter took on the marathon for the first time, and is hoping to raise £20,000 for her chosen cause.

Charity: Gallacher ran for SafeHands for Mothers, a charity that uses photography and film to spotlight issues around maternal and newborn health.

Candice Brown

A former Great British Bake-Off winner and Dancing on Ice contestant, fans thought Brown’s stint as a PE teacher would stand her in good stead. But speaking ahead of the race, however, she revealed that “running is not [her] preferred sport.”

Charity: An ambassador for Alzheimer’s research, Brown was supporting Dementia Revolution in tribute to her late grandfather and is hoping to raise £2,500.

Charlie Webster

Jumping for joy: Charlie Webster has a strong track record when it comes to  marathon events (PA Archive/PA Images)
PA

The sports journalist, who has appeared on Sky Sports News, Channel 4 and Channel 5, is a veteran when it comes to endurance events, having completed a staggering 13 marathons to date. This year was her second time on the London route.

Charity: Webster was raising money for Malaria No More, having nearly died in 2016 after contracting the disease during a 3,000 mile cycle ride from London to Rio ahead of the Olympic Games.

Cel Spellman

First time: Cel Spellmanwill make his London Marathon debut 
SplashNews.com

The 24-year-old actor and radio presenter is best known for his roles in BBC school drama Waterloo Road and on ITV’s Cold Feet reboot. Training for his first marathon “brought him a whole new appreciation for anyone who has run any sort of distance”.

Charity: Spellman was running in aid of WWF and UNICEF, two worthy causes that have “been close to [his] heart for many years.”

Helen Skelton

Third time: Helen Skelton previously competed in 2009 and 2014
PA Archive/PA Images

After making her marathon debut as a Blue Peter presenter back in 2009, Skelton completed the race in 2014 with a time of four hours and 30 minutes. She appeared as part of the BBC’s team of London Marathon presenters in 2015, and this year competed for a third time.

Charity: The 35-year-old was supporting Prostrate Cancer UK.

Ed Gamble

Comic: Ed Gamble said he signed up after "two to three glasses of wine"
Rex Features

Best known for his regular appearances on Mock the Week and as a co-presenter of The Peacock and Gamble podcast, stand-up comic Gamble took part for the second time. “I wasn’t planning on doing it again,” he recently told the Daily Star. “But they called to ask after I’d had two to three glasses of wine.”

Charity: The comedian was once again running in aid of type one diabetes charity JDRF.

Jonathan Pearce

Commentator: Jonathan Pearce is part of the BBC's Match of the Day team
Ben A. Pruchnie/Getty Images

The BBC’s football commentator has been part of the Match of the Day team since 2004 and ran his eighth London Marathon

Charity: Pearce was supporting the Lily Foundation, the charity which he helped to establish in memory of his niece Lily, who died of mitochondrial disease at eight months old.

Nell McAndrew

Personal best: Nell McAndrew is one of the fastest stars to have run the race
PA Wire/PA Images

The model and TV presenter is one of the fastest female stars to take part in the race, but has not run a marathon since she set her personal best of two hours 54 minutes and 39 seconds in 2012. Speaking ahead of the event, she revealed that she had “lost her confidence” in running, but said she was more focused on enjoying the race than “getting a time”.

Charity: McAndrew ran her seventh marathon in aid of three charities: Dementia Revolution, Cancer Research UK and Caudwell Children.

Leon Ockenden

Ockenden has appeared in shows like Waterloo Road and Mr Selfridge, and has starred in Coronation Street since 2016. He took part in last year’s race, after being forced to pull out of the 2017 marathon due to injury.

Charity: The soap star was raising funds for Soft Bones, a UK based charity aiming to raise awareness of hypophosphatasia.

Laura Wright

The classical singer is a regular fixture at major sporting matches and 2019 marked her second London Marathon.

Charity: The musician was running in support of the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, a charity dedicated to the protection of endangered species.

Keith Senior

Rugby star: Keith Senior has run the marathon four times
Nick Potts/PA Archive/PA Images

Rugby League star Senior is returned to the London Marathon for a fifth time. The sportsman is considered one of the best players of the Super League era, and has represented Great Britain and England at international level.

Charity: Senior was once again raising money for the Laura Crane Youth Cancer Trust, which supports 13 to 24-year-olds fighting cancer.

Jamie Peacock

Sporting hero: Jamie Peacock is raising money for the hospice that cared for his late father
PA

Another former Rugby League star, Peacock has captained Great Britain and England. This was his second London Marathon.

Charity: The rugby ace’s chosen charity was Sue Ryder, to recognise the exceptional care his late father received in the Sue Ryder Wheatfields Hospice in Leeds.

London Marathon 2018

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