Michael Cox's post-jog blog

Children's author Michael Cox donned the cape, mask and outfit of his new creation Johnny Catbiscuit to run the London Marathon in aid of the Guide Dogs for the Blind Association. He tells us how he got on.

Just back from Londonland Marathon. Still feeling more or less OK, apart from having to walk downstairs backwards due to aching knees.

A great run in all, taking a mere - but truly magnificent and fun-filled - six hours.

Began in glorious sunshine with a slightly surreal, "Cripes, I’m doing the London Marathon! How ever did I get here?" feel.

Finished with an even more surreal, "Cripes, I've just done the London Marathon! How ever did I get here?" feel.

Very focused for the whole run. In fact, so focused that I failed to see and ran straight past my family and publishers who were waiting with a great heap of my Johnny Catbiscuit books for me to give away at mile 12.

However, they finally caught my attention by leaping into my path and screaming in my face, so books were duly handed to a couple of hundred delighted children. Mission One accomplished!

Highlight: Performing spectacular ‘super-swoops’ and ‘super-leaps’ to great cheers and whoops from hordes of onlookers, especially outside the inns and hostelries of Old London Town.

However, after mile 20, these leaps and swoops became markedly less ‘super’, ending up as a sort of apologetic wiggle and stagger.

Lowlight: Horizontal hail and sleet somewhere around mile 12 which soaked me to the skin and caused me to truly believe that my nipples had fallen off, presenting me with the question "Do I go back and look for them?" but quickly coming to the conclusion "Oh forget it! What’s a pair of nipples when you’re running for the Guide Dogs!"

Mission two accomplished!