London Marathon 2016 Route, Road Closures And Celebrity Participants

The race will be taking over the capital on Sunday.

The annual London Marathon is set to take place on Sunday 24 April.

Around 38,000 runners will tackle the gruelling course around the capital, beginning at Blackheath and finishing on The Mall.

The start of the men's elite race in 2015
The start of the men's elite race in 2015
Reuters Staff / Reuters

The route passes through Woolwich, Greenwich, over Tower Bridge, along Victoria Embankment, through Parliament square and ending up in front of Buckingham Palace.

This is the 36th London Marathon and thousands of spectators are expected to turn out to watch the race, whether supporting a friend or loved one, or simply soaking up the atmosphere.

As well as the elite athletes vying for glory, a number of other famous faces will be taking part in the mass race, including Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes, Game of Thrones star Natalie Dormer and Top Gear host Chris Evans.

Game of Thrones star Natalie Dormer will be taking part in the marathon again this year
Game of Thrones star Natalie Dormer will be taking part in the marathon again this year
John Walton/PA Archive

A number of MPs are also taking part including Welsh secretary Alun Cairns, health minister Alistair Burt and Rochdale MP Simon Danczuk.

Astronaut Tim Peake will even complete a marathon in space at the same time by running on a treadmill.

Information on the best places to watch the race can be found here.

Start times

08:55 – Elite wheelchair race

09:00 – Ambulant athletes

09:15 – Elite Women

10:00 – Elite Men and British Athletics plus mass start

The race involves much of central London's roads being taken over and so anyone planning on travelling by car or bus is advised to check information on closures.

Details about road closures and diversions can be found here.

Temperatures look set to reach around 10C, significantly lower than the 13C average for April, so spectators are being advised to wrap up warm.

Some 38,000 people are expected to take part in this year's London Marathon
Some 38,000 people are expected to take part in this year's London Marathon
Ben Hoskins via Getty Images

Lindsay Mears, spokesperson for the Met Office, said: “We’re getting a northerly high coming down the country and that’s starting towards the weekend, it’s Arctic air.

“That’s going to bring much colder conditions over even the south of the UK.

“There’s a possibility that there may be a few wintry flurries but nothing too significant in the London area.

“Temperatures on Sunday are looking like around 10C, quite cloudy. If there isn’t much rainfall then the potential for wintery showers diminishes.”

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