THE LITHERLAND RUNNING MAN

By Emmey Little

‘The most interesting thing is not so much finding out exactly who this person is. The interesting thing is what people THINK he is.’

The Litherland Running Man is a local phenomenon. A mystery athlete who has captured the imagination of Sefton’s residents with his daily, half-clothed, all-weather running regime.

But what begins as a roadtrip to find the phantom marathon man emerges as something more significant: a journey through a peculiar kind of fandom. Because the Litherland Running man has become a social media icon, with legions of spottings and theories posted online.

Emmey talks to Dr Nedim Hassan, Senior Lecturer in Media and Cultural studies at Liverpool John Moores University, to learn more about fandom, culture and identity, and how this applies to the creative mythology that has arisen around the Litherland Running Man.

And as the roadtrip around south Sefton reaches its climax, things come to a head at The Netherton pub…

Nedim Hassan
Steph Lynch
Emma Nibbs
Tricia O’Neill
Morven Proctor
Kirsty Rothwell
Ian Thorlad