Due to medical advise, the daughter of late broadcaster Bill Turnbull has had to withdraw from this year’s London Marathon, but she has verified that donations collected in her father’s memory will be carried forward.
Turnbull disclosed in 2018 that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer, later outlining his therapy in the Channel 4 programme Staying Alive.
The former BBC Breakfast host perished in September of last year, at the age of 66.
Flora Turnbull, his daughter, had been training to run the marathon in memory of her father later this month, but has now disclosed she has been compelled to ‘defer’ her participation.
Flora had collected more than £11,000 for Prostate Cancer UK, a charity for which her father was an advocate.
‘Marathon update: on my doctor’s advice, I have had to defer my marathon place,’ she posted on Twitter this week.
‘If you donated, I am incredibly grateful and have been so moved by all the donations and messages. I never would have been able to predict the amount raised, all because of the generosity and kindness of others.
‘I am absolutely gutted not to be running this year, but all donations will roll over and still go to Prostate Cancer UK and looking on the bright side I now have a little bit longer to raise even more.’
In the post Flora said that the marathon would still be run, ‘just not this year’.
‘I have learnt so many things on this training journey, perhaps the key one thing that things rarely go to plan,’ she wrote.
‘I know the achievement of running it eventually will feel even greater after these setbacks.
‘Thank you so much again to everyone who has sponsored me or sent me uplifting messages of support, it means such a great deal to me.’
Flora stated on her JustGiving website for Prostate Cancer UK that she wanted to collect funds for the charity so that “everyone can keep their dads, partners, brothers, sons, grandads, uncles, and friends around for as long as possible.”
‘My dad was involved with Prostate Cancer UK since he became unwell with the disease five years ago, so it is hugely important to me that we carry on with the work he did with them,’ she wrote.
Turnbull took a leave of absence from his Classic FM radio program, which he had held for five years, in October 2021.
He departed BBC Breakfast in 2016 after 15 years of hosting the show.
BBC Breakfast airs weekdays from 6am on BBC One.