Whaley Bridge man to take on London Marathon in memory of his mum

Bob Bell-Johnson from Whaley Bridge was just 18 when he found out his mum had cancer and she died a year later, aged just 53.

He said: “Losing my mum at an early age had a massive impact on my life which I bottled up for a long time. It's been the source of my battle with depression and my problem with alcohol.”

Bob has been sober since September 2023 and turned his life around.

Born with a club foot which required surgery it left Bob with a very short calf and limited muscle and mobility throughout his left leg.

He said: “I am very privileged to be able to run after these obstacles and it’s such an honour to be running the London marathon for such a great charity.

“I've always wanted to do something special to raise money to fund vital research and support others who need it.

“This year it will be 20 years since she was taken, so this is it.”

Bob says running for him is like ‘eating chocolate with gravy it can be done but it's not great’.

He said: “I also had back surgery in 2013 for cauda equina syndrome which left me on walking sticks for two years, this caused my calf muscle shrink even more.

“Running certainly isn't easy, and if it was, I wouldn't be asking you to part with your hard earned wonga.”

In April 2026, Bob will be running the TCS LONDON MARATHON -26.2 miles to raise money for Sarcoma UK as his ‘beautiful’ mum died from Sarcoma cancer in 2006.

During his mum, Liz’s treatment Bob remembers his ‘pretty eccentric ma’ wearing wigs and a cold cap, and also the sad day she asked him to shave her head and he shaved his as well.

He said: “I will never forget mum being in a coma in the hospice and my gran walking in and collapsing seeing mum almost lifeless, it has haunted me ever since.”

Now he has set himself the challenge of raising £5,000 for Sarcoma UK and is taking donations via www.justgiving.com/page/bob-runningforsarcoma