Mo Farah overtakes 'Marathon Man' Richard Whitehead and the Paralympian passes on his best wishes to his compatriot. A flex of those meaty biceps by Whitehead once Farah has gone by. The Briton working the crowd like an old vaudevillian.

Ethiopia's Tirunesh Dibaba has now completed 23 miles, but unfortunately for the debutant Edna Kiplagat and Florence Kiplagat are ahead of her. The trio looking as fresh and bright as daffodils in full bloom.

Brendan Foster
BBC Sport athletics commentator

"Mo wanted to go out there and have a good race and up to now, he is having a good race. He is on schedule for a British record but there are some tough, serious competitors out here ahead of him and it is very unlikely that Mo can speed up or they slow down to make a difference to the race result."

Mo Farah glides by The Anchor and Hope pub and I only mention that watering hole in order to say that it is one of 78 pubs on or near the course.

The leading men have completed 25k and Mo Farah is 49 seconds behind. The front runners ran the last mile 20 seconds faster than any previous mile. Farah on course for the British record, at least.

Babs Robertson:, external I don't think I could run to the shop at the pace those elites are running the marathon!

Emma Claire Rowlands:, external I'm getting tired even WATCHING the London Marathon! Good on everyone giving it a go!

Tom Fordyce
BBC Sport's chief sports writer in London

"One of the wonderful things about the London Marathon is the way it transforms the humdrum streets into elite sporting stadia. Suddenly the Rose of Denmark pub and the Lucky Horse Chinese takeaway are grandstands for world-class sport."

World record holder Wilson Kipsang has decided to take charge of the main pack and the tall Kenyan trots out in front. In the women's elite race, Edna and Florence Kiplagat are setting the pace, but they haven't completely shaken off Tirunesh Dibaba, who is 12 seconds behind.

Mo Farah also experiences a mishap at a water station and he will have to do without fluid for a mile or so. Raucous cheers from the crowd who are lined up around the Tower of London. Close your eyes and cast your mind back a few hundred years to the Middle Ages and it's as if the masses are gearing up for a beheading.

Mo Farah crossing Tower Bridge and although he is a tad slower than he would have intended halfway, he is not too far behind. The Briton is 38 seconds slower than the leaders at the halfway stage.

Paula Radcliffe
Women's marathon world record holder on BBC TV

"Dibaba's dealing with playing catch-up and she's now running on her own rather than hanging on the back of what was a group of three."

Oh no! Tirunesh Dibaba far from smooth at the water station. The Ethiopian drops her water bottle so turns back to pick up the precious liquid. Ah, the water station, the novice's scourge... Everyone needs fluid at this stage of a marathon, even the elite.

The distance between Dibaba and the two Kenyans - Edna and Florence Kiplagat - unsurprisingly increases and it is now a two-way battle between the Kiplagats, who aren't related.

Breakaway! Florence and Edna Kiplagat work their way up the gears and the pace is too much for defending champion Priscah Jeptoo, who is now merely a speck in the distance. Tirunesh Dibaba is hanging on, a few metres behind in third.

At the very least, Mo Farah wants to break Steve Jones's British record time of two hours, seven minutes and 13 seconds, set in 1985. At current pace he is predicted to run around 2:06.

And the Welshman expects Farah to break his 29-year-old record, saying: "It's not an easy target but it's pretty soft compared to the world level right now.

"He should be focused on winning the race. He's got all the tools, he's done the training, he's got a great coach - it should be his race in the bag really."

Paula Radcliffe
Women's marathon world record holder on BBC TV

"There was a big discussion whether Mo was going to pick up his drinks or take it from someone. If you take it from someone it can be difficult. Up until last week he was going to have someone hand it to him."

Mo Farah has upped the tempo after a relatively leisurely first 10k. (He ran his last 5k at the same pace as the leaders, but he is still 45 seconds behind.) The frontrunners aren't within his sight, but if he is still in contention with two or three miles to go, he will have done his job.

Tanni Grey-Thompson
Six-time London Marathon winner on BBC TV

"Tatyana McFadden is a superb racer. At the press conference she was talking down her chances. Today she broke with such a long way to go and felt strong."

Tatyana McFadden is an incredible athlete, a triple gold medallist at the London 2012 Paralympics and a Winter Paralympic silver medallist in 1km cross-country skiing in Sochi.

Switzerland's Manuela Schar was some distance behind in second, while Japan's Wakako Tsuchida was third.

Tatyana McFadden, unchallenged, makes her way down The Mall on her own and the American, the defending champion, goes through the tape in a course record of 1:45.10.

Ed Sherry:, external Would love to see the wheelchair guys go over 50 miles. They are such amazing athletes. So close for Weir

Madelaine Riley:, external Salute everyone running the marathon today! Run Mo run!