Only one Royal has ever run the London Marathon – who was it?

The 2026 London Marathon is set to kick off tomorrow, and the race is no stranger to famous faces.

Actors, presenters, singers, sports stars and a fair few politicians have taken part over the years, but only one royal has run the race in its 39-year history.

In 2010, at the age of 21, Princess Beatrice took on the 26.2-mile challenge in aid of her mum, the Duchess of York’s charity, Children in Crisis.

Wearing a green tutu, the royal joined 31 others, including Richard Branson, his two children, Sam and Holly, and Beatrice’s then-boyfriend David Clark, to run the race while all tied together as a ‘human caterpillar’.

She completed the race in five hours, 15 minutes and 57 seconds, and the group broke the record for the most people to finish a marathon while tied together.

Beatrice, who is Prince Andrew’s eldest daughter, was pictured giving her mum, Fergie, an emotional hug at the end.

It’s thought security fears have stopped some of the more high-profile royals from competing.

In 2017, Kate, William, and Harry apparently wanted to take part, but were refused because the high security presence that would be needed along the track wasn’t logistically feasible.

The trio reportedly wanted to run in support of their mental health organisation, Heads Together, but in the end cheered on the runners from the sidelines.

Looking back at last year’s London Marathon

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Among them were The Masked Singer host Joel Dommett, who was pictured limping out of the race after fainting at mile 17.

He was joined by McFly drummer Harry Judd, football icon John Terry, and TV presenter Romesh Ranganathan.

Last year also saw Kelly Brook run the Marathon after training for months with actor and model husband Jeremy Parisi, breaking down after crossing the finish line in six hours and 42 minutes.

At the beginning of last year’s event, activist group Youth Demand leapt onto the road at Tower Bridge as runners approached and hurled red powder at Tower Bridge.

The group, who were calling for a trade embargo on Israel, were tackled to the ground before they were surrounded by a group of police officers and arrested.

When is the 2026 London Marathon?

The 2026 London Marathon is held tomorrow, starting at 9:30am in Greenwich Park and Blackheath Park before ending in front of Buckingham Palace.

A record-breaking 1,133,813 people entered the ballot for the 2026 event, a major increase from 2025’s 840,318 record breaker.

Expect several road closures around London for the event, which we’ve rounded up here, but the Tube will still be available for use despite this week’s earlier strike, and Brompton Bike Hire are offering complementary bike hire for travel across the city.

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