A man dressed as the Big Ben tower found his London Marathon time extended by a few seconds as his costume was too tall to fit under the finishing arch.

Lukas Bates, from Maidstone in Kent, was attempting a new record for the fastest marathon dressed as a landmark.

This is not what you need after 26.2 miles. pic.twitter.com/ZkmJftX0Hv — BBC Sport (@BBCSport) April 28, 2019

But when the 30-year-old reached the finish line he found he could not make it across because the top of his costume of Elizabeth Tower, as it is officially called, got stuck on the arch.

In the end Mr Bates, who was running in support of Dementia Revolution, had to be helped across the line by a race volunteer.

His mishap did not ultimately affect his record attempt: with a time of three hours and 54 minutes he fell a little short of the current mark of three hours, 34 minutes and 34 seconds.

It is not the first time his costume has got him into trouble while running.

During the Vitality Big Half in London, he needed a helpful push from other runners when he was blown off course by strong winds at Canary Wharf.

Mr Bates’ brush with viral fame had an upside as the video prompted dozens of people to seek out his fundraising page online and donate.

By Sunday evening Mr Bates had raised over £3,000 – more than 300% of his target – with around £1,000 having been added since his finish-line mishap.

:: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-display/showROFundraiserPage?userUrl=lukasBates&pageUrl=1

PA Media