A Calne man is running his first marathon in memory of his Dad, who sadly died before his wedding day.

Richard Smith will be taking part in The Virgin Money London Marathon on Sunday to raise money for the British Heart Foundation, after losing his Dad Philip to a heart attack in January 2014.

He said: "His death came completely out of the blue, he had just been voted senior captain at Marlborough Golf Club - which he loved and where he played religiously - and he was really excited for my wedding that summer. I know that he really wanted to be there and it saddens us all that he also never got to meet any of his grandchildren."

Mr Smith decided to take up running after his father's death, and has lost over four and a half stone in the process. He said: "I know how proud my Dad would be of me taking on the London Marathon. A lot of his side of the family have come out in support since I've started fundraising for this and I'm hoping to raise over £1,000 for the British Heart Foundation."

Karen McDonnell, events manager at the British Heart Foundation, said: "We are thrilled that Richard has chosen to take on this legendary challenge for the British Heart Foundation and will be supporting him every step of the way.

"Around 650,000 people are living with cardiovascular disease in the South West - by joining the fight and running the marathon, Richard really will be helping us stop heart disease in its tracks."

To find out more about the British Heart Foundation's programme of events, please visit: www.bhf.org.uk/events.