West Bromwich man's 500-mile run honours Terry Wogan

Manish Patel, aged 26, of Portobello Road, has already run 200 miles having only taken up running this time last year. He hopes to raise around £1,500 by November.

Mr Patel will also be running his first marathon in Wolverhampton this year.

He said: "For someone who has never run a full marathon before and only took up running this time last year, it is a daunting challenge. I'm doing it for Sir Terry Wogan.

"He was an inspiration for a lot of people out there and to me. When he was presenting Children in Need for all those years, he always brought a smile to my face and I hope he's looking down on me saying 'good on ya son!'"

Each of Mr Patel's runs will be of varying distances and will be verified by a device worn on his wrist. Mr Patel will also record each run on his JustGiving and social media pages.

He is also completing the challenge so as to inspire young people with learning difficulties to keep working hard and striving towards success.

He said: I'm also taking on the challenge because of what I went through – I had some learning difficulties in my childhood, particularly with reading and writing. It was a really difficult time for me and I've managed to get over it because I've worked hard and never given up.

"I just want people to see that, though you might have a disability, that shouldn't stop you from achieving your dreams. If you believe in yourself, anything is possible.

"I'm also running for my family – they've had to put up with me for 26 years and I want to give something back and make them proud." Mr Patel has had to alter his training regime.

"I aim to do two runs a week and make sure they come between 18 and 22 miles – that's how I'm keeping on target, he said. "I'm eating more fruit, salad, vegetables and lean meat, too.

"I just want to raise as much money as I can by running as much as I can." To donate, Mr Patel's JustGiving pages are available at justgiving.com/Manish-Patel16 or you can follow him on Twitter via @Baggies20.