Meet Jen Flannigan, our brilliant London Marathon runner.
On Sunday 25 April 2027, Jen will take on 26.2 miles through the streets of London to raise money for WMRSASC.
Is she a lifelong distance runner? No. Has she been quietly knocking out half marathons every weekend in preparation? Also no.
In fact, when the email arrived confirming her place, Jen was on holiday with a massive cocktail and an enormous piece of cake.
Her reaction?
“Oh sh*t!”
And so begins Jen’s Road to London.
Over the coming months, we’ll be following her journey from 10k to 26.2 miles – through training runs, tired legs, inevitable setbacks and, knowing Jen, plenty of laughs along the way.
Before things get serious, we thought we should introduce her properly…
Jen, tell us a little about yourself. What does life look like when you’re not contemplating running ridiculous distances?
I’m Jen, a weight loss coach and founder of Evolve Weight Loss, based around Worcestershire and the West Midlands. I help people lose weight and feel great without banning half the supermarket or making them feel guilty for eating a biscuit.
When I’m not working or contemplating running ridiculous distances, life is usually a mixture of family, friends, filming my everyday chaos for social media and attempting to remember why I walked into a room.
I’m 47, perimenopausal, have ADHD, two teenage children, a husband called Kev and apparently not enough going on… so I’ve also agreed to play the bad fairy in our local panto.
Basically, life is busy, slightly chaotic and rarely boring!
You describe yourself as “no Mo Farah”. So what’s your running history really like?
I first started running 12 years ago when I met my husband. He was really into running and it was something I’d never thought I’d do. TBH, I used to see people running and think, “Why would they do that?”
But I signed up to my first 10k and ran it with Kev. It was hard, but I felt amazing when I crossed the finish line.
I then did a couple more 10ks over the next couple of years and signed myself up to a half marathon in Bristol nine years ago.
I did another one the following weekend, which was horrendous. I cried for half the route because I was in so much pain, but somehow managed to get over the finish line.
That was the last half I did. It put me off completely!
Are you starting from a reasonable base, or is getting to 26.2 miles going to be a huge journey?
Since finding out I’d got a place in London, I’ve started doing some training to try and give my head a boost that I can do this.
I was actually on holiday, drinking a massive cocktail and eating a gigantic piece of cake, when I got the email saying, “See you on the Sunday!”
My response was: “Oh sh*t!”
I’ve managed to get back up to 10k, but I’m very conscious I’ve got a lot more miles than this to do.
Why this year? Was it a long-held ambition or a moment of madness?
Every year for ten years, both my husband and I have put in for London.
It’s been on my bucket list to do before I’m 50 – I’ll be 48 in January next year.
I love a challenge and I also love it when someone says, “You can’t do that” or “Why are you doing that?”
I love proving people wrong and pushing myself. I find having goals helps me mentally too.
Why did you choose WMRSASC?
I knew I wanted to support a smaller, local charity where the money raised could make a genuine difference to people in our own community.
WMRSASC provides such an important service to people at an incredibly difficult time in their lives, yet many people probably don’t realise just how much support like this is needed, or how long people can sometimes wait to receive it.
The work they do really matters to me, and I wanted to use this slightly ridiculous challenge to help more people access the support they deserve, while also raising awareness of a brilliant local charity that doesn’t always get the recognition or funding of the bigger national organisations.
What are you most excited about – and what are you absolutely dreading?
I’m most excited about being part of such an iconic event. The atmosphere, the crowds and that feeling of running the London Marathon is something I know I’ll never forget.
What am I dreading?
The distance, my energy levels, needing a wee halfway round and whether my legs will actually get me over that finish line!
I’m sure there’ll be moments when I question every life choice that led me there, but hopefully the crowds, my husband, knowing people have donated money and the thought of the finish line will keep me going.
I hope!!
What would you love people following your journey to do?
I’d obviously love people to donate if they’re able to, because every bit will help WMRSASC support more people locally.
But I’d also love my journey to inspire someone else to believe they can do hard things too.
That doesn’t mean signing up to run 26.2 miles – please don’t blame me for that!
It could simply mean being a bit kinder to yourself, setting small, manageable goals and noticing the difference those little changes make to how you feel.
You’re often capable of far more than you give yourself credit for.
Finally: sponsor you, share your story, cheer you on or join you for a training run?
Sponsor, share, shake your pom poms!
Follow Jen’s Road to London
And we absolutely intend to.
Between now and April, we’ll be checking in with Jen as the distances get longer, the training gets tougher and London starts to feel very real.
Every mile Jen runs will help raise vital funds for WMRSASC and raise awareness of the specialist support available to people affected by sexual violence, abuse and trauma.
So please get behind her.
Sponsor if you can. Share her story. Follow her progress. And get those pom poms ready.
👉 Sponsor Jen on JustGiving
👉 Follow WMRSASC on social media for Jen’s Road to London