Hardest Geezer inspires man to run length of UK

James Norman, who said he is not the best runner, has set himself the challenge of running the length of the UK

A man inspired by the exploits of "Hardest Geezer" Russell Cook plans to run the length of the UK in 74 days.

James Norman from Coventry said he was inspired by Mr Cook who finished a run of the full length of Africa on Sunday.

The 23-year-old set off from Land's End, Cornwall on 30 March with the aim of reaching John O'Groats in Scotland in about two and a half months.

He will cover 874 miles (1,406.5km) to raise money for charity all while carrying his tent and cooking stove in a backpack.

Content creator Mr Norman said: "I genuinely thought this would be a good story for the grandkids."

"If I'm ever going to do something like this, it's now while I'm young."

He added: "I've also had some inspiration from Russ Cook and I thought that's such an amazing challenge and I wanted to do something on a bit of a smaller scale."

Mr Norman has covered a total of 131 miles (212km) so far, reaching Tiverton in Devon.

He plans to run about 20km each day, apart from Sundays, which he has designated for rest.

Russell Cook crossed his finish line in Tunisia on Sunday after running for 352 days and facing all sorts of hardships.

Mr Norman is carrying cooking and camping equipment and provisions on his back

Mr Norman has been documenting his journey to 8,500 followers on TikTok and said his highlight was meeting people.

He is travelling alone, mainly camping outside or staying in hostels, carrying his camping equipment in a backpack.

He added he had "never run a marathon in my life".

"To be honest, I'm not the best runner and the most distance I've done in the past is around 20km," he said.

Mr Norman is fundraising for Tearfund, a Christian charity which partners with local churches to tackle poverty.

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