Running News Daily

Comedian pledges to run 31 marathons in 31 days for charity

The comedian’s challenge aims to promote ‘unity’ and ‘goodwill’

Comedian Eddie Izzard has announced he will run 31 marathons in 31 days next January, as part of his ‘Make Humanity Great Again’ campaign. Each treadmill marathon will be followed by a stand-up gig that will be streamed from the Riverside Studios, in west London.

A limited number of audience tickets for groups of two to four will also be available
for the gig series, which is called ‘Still Standing’.

Izzard’s ‘Make Humanity Great Again’ campaign will raise money for charities supporting disadvantaged and vulnerable people.

Viewers are encouraged to join in virtually over Zwift or Zoom as he runs the marathons. The subsequent gigs will provide a ‘best-of’ of Izzard’s stand-up, and will include two performances of his latest show, ‘Wunderbar’, in German (January 23) and in French (January 28).

Each run will take the ‘theme’ of a different city – a nod to Izzard’s past challenges, which have seen him run marathons in various international locations. Last February, Izzard ran 29 marathons in 29 days, one in each European capital, plus a final extra one back in London. He raised £140,000.

He also ran 27 marathons in 27 days across South Africa in 2016 and 43 marathons in 51 days in 2009.

On the campaign’s crowdfunding page, Izzard wrote: ‘Make Humanity Great Again stands for unity, the sharing of beliefs and the power of human beings uniting across the continents and around the world.

‘As a campaign, it seeks to promote a fair chance in life for all, particularly those who experience disadvantage and discrimination.’