In 2009, Eddie Izzard amazingly completed 43 marathons in 51 days for Sport Relief despite having no prior history of long-distance running. This time he will once again look to astound us all with another incredible feat of stamina. The actor and comedian will take on the challenge of running 27 marathons across South Africa in 27 days – each marathon marking one year that Nelson Mandela spent incarcerated in prison.
During the course of this unbelievable journey, the star will also be telling Mandela’s story and the turbulent history of South Africa.
Izzard will be running over 700 miles in total, across open country, mountains, cities and townships. As he travels across the country he will be visiting the places that mattered most to Mandela and meeting the people whose lives he touched.
Eddie will begin in the Eastern Cape, where the former president was born, then he journey on to Cape Town, where one of the marathons will take place on Robben Island – where Mandela spent the majority of his 27 year long prison sentence. The last few marathons will be in the Johannesburg area and will finish in Pretoria, where Mandela was on trial.
The challenge will take all of Eddie's grit and determination, but his good humour will see him through, along with the fantastic stories he will hear on his journey, bringing a fresh perspective on the anti-apartheid leader.
In this inspiring two-part inspiring on HISTORY®, we see Eddie experience adversity along the way, while producing a moving tribute to Nelson Mandela.
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