A teenager known to thousands of followers as The Hull Boy has succeeded in his attempt to become the youngest person to run the full length of the UK for mental health.
Marcus Skeet, 17, who is a passionate Hull City fan, reached John O’Groats last night (Thursday, May 29) after two months of running and now with a total of more than £128,000 in his fundraising pot as of early Friday afternoon. He posted: “The youngest person and first under 18 to run the entire length of the UK.
“£111,000 raised [the amount has since risen] for @mindcharity. 1,347km ran (837 miles), 1 car crash and two of the most difficult but greatest months of my life.
“I’m an emotional mess tonight but I just want to say, no matter how dark a place you are, it can and will get better. 2 years ago I was in the darkest place in my life; 2 years later we have made history.
“Thank you to everyone who believed in me. I love you all very much. I’ll do a post when I’m able to process what’s just happened. Mental health matters.” Marcus posted pictures of his elated self reaching the John O’Groats marker and of an emotional reunion with his dad, who is living with dementia.
In a video posted on the eve of his final push to the finish, Marcus said: “Just under two years ago, at the age of 15, I attempted to not be here anymore. I was 145kg (320lb), diabetic and struggling badly with depression, anxiety and OCD.
“As a carer of my dad I felt like I couldn’t talk out to anyone and bottled up all of my emotions. No matter what, I always found a way to skip sports day at school.
“Any time running was in PE, I’d fake illness or an injury and absolutely hated it.” In March 2024, Marcus said he was at “the lowest I’d ever been” and went for a walk that “truly saved my life”.
He set himself the challenge of running one mile a day to raise money and awareness for the Mind charity, “the charity who saved mine and my dad’s life”. He said: “Over the past year I’ve done some pretty mental things – a marathon, an ultra, went on a date, and then ran with some legends.
“But, I’ve also seen my dad seriously deteriorate and I’ve had my ups and downs with mental health, to say the least. Tomorrow may just be a finish line, or another run into the many challenges out there, but to me and my family, this is everything I’ve worked towards the last two years.
“There were plenty of tears and many stories told but we will never forget the true meaning behind this.” Marcus has been documenting his daily runs of around 20 miles, and the highs and lows of the huge challenge, on social media.
The teen, who lives with his parents in Malton, North Yorkshire, has been receiving hundreds of messages of encouragement on his journey and has appeared on BBC Breakfast. Five days in, Marcus got a surprising boost from GB former long-distance champion Sir Mo Farah.
The legendary runner messaged him on X to “keep going champ” and told him “anything is possible”. Later, the Hull City vlogger was joined by Coronation Street actor Colson Smith, who until recently played Craig Tinker in the soap, in running a half-marathon distance into Warrington.
Marcus’s GoFundMe appeal page had a “dream target” of £100k, with Marcus first aiming for a more moderate £20k as he did not want to set the goal too high, saying: “Any donations would mean everything.” As his target was reached – then surpassed – as he embarked on his final 16 miles, Marcus posted: “£100,000 raised. Truly speechless. When I began running I said my all-time goal was to raise 100K for @mindcharity – never did I imagine we would do it on this challenge alone.
“I don’t even know how to word this, this is already the greatest day of my life and I haven’t even finished the run yet.
“To whoever donated £20,000 anonymously, you have a heart of gold and thank you so much for believing in the challenge. Thank you to everyone who has supported, I will forever be grateful for you all.”
Supporters have continued to donate, with the amount early on Friday (May 30) afternoon having reached over £128,176.
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