Scissorman’s very first Yorkshire Marathon

Tim Wheelar, 62, a magistrate and former headteacher of Stockport Grammar School, will be taking on his very first Yorkshire Marathon this October.

Dressed as his alter-ego, ‘Scissorman’, Tim will be participating in a bid to raise awareness for the charity, the Little Princess Trust. It will be Tim’s 17^th marathon dressed as a Scissorman and 30^th race overall dressed in the costume.

The Little Princess Trust provides real hair wigs, free of charge, to children and young people who have lost their own hair through cancer treatment or to other conditions such as Alopecia.

The charity is also one of the largest funders of childhood cancer research in the UK.

Weighing over 10Kg, Tim’s costume can provide quite a lot of wind resistance, but he’s hoping the fantastic local Yorkshire support will keep him going to the finish line.

With a pair of giant scissors strapped to his back, Tim aims to raise awareness for the charity’s ongoing mission to provide wigs for children who have lost their hair due to cancer treatment.

Tim, who has been Chair of the Little Princess Trust since 2011, originally became involved with the charity in his role as headteacher at a former school. The charity was established by the parents of pupil Hannah Tarplee, who tragically passed away in 2005 after being diagnosed with cancer.

Speaking to Run For All, ahead of event day, Tim said “I am very much looking forward to running my first Yorkshire marathon and wanted to share my story with you. I am chair of trustees for a charity called The Little Princess Trust.

I run marathons and half marathons as "Scissorman" to raise funds and profile for the charity. We make, provide and style free, real hair wigs for children and young people who have lost their hair, primarily through cancer treatment.

The scissors refer to the styling of wigs but also to the many many people who have their hair cut and then donate it to the charity to be made into wigs - without their support, we couldn't do what we do. They lead to some great conversations about the work of the charity.

I also regularly get to meet people who have donated their hair or who have members of their family who have donated their hair and sometimes even people whose children have received a wig. Above all, I want to try and make sure that everyone who might need the support of the charity is aware of what we offer.

I try and run races all- round the country - so far this year I’ve taken part in the Manchester Marathon, London Marathon and Rob Burrow Leeds Marathons and Manchester 10k. In the two weeks before the Yorkshire marathon, I will also be running the Cardiff Half Marathon and the Manchester Half Marathon before bringing the scissors up to York.

The scissors are about 2m in length and the whole outfit weighs over 7kg. This will be my 17th marathon dressed as Scissorman and my 30th overall.”

Good luck Tim, we can’t wait to cheer you on across the finish line!

To support Tim on his fundraising mission for the Little Princess Trust, click here

Entries are still open for this year’s Yorkshire Marathon, taking place on Sunday 20th October. To enter and find out more click here