Shakespeare Marathon cancelled

THE Shakespeare Marathon and half marathon have been cancelled.

Organisers have issued the following statement: "We are sad to announce the cancellation of the Shakespeare Marathon/Half on 26th April. We know this is disappointing and there will be many questions from runners. In this unprecedented situation please bear with us. Entrants will receive an email on what happens next."

It's not known if the marathon will be re-arranged but as with many other major events in Stratford's social calendar, organisers are assessing their schedules on a day-to-day basis.

The outbreak of coronavirus has seen empty shelves in supermarkets, a mass shop of hand gels and a rush on non-perishable goods.

At Tesco’s Maybird store in Stratford some shelves were temporarily empty of stock while other smaller stores advised customers of the next “expected” delivery date of certain products where stocks had been depleted or sold out.

South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust chief executive officer Glen Burley added this post to social media.

“Person seen in outpatients filling up their own bottle from our alcohol gel dispenser. Thank goodness that the vast majority of the British public are respectful of others and our amazing NHS.”

Responding to the theft of hand gel dispeners from toilets at Warwick Hospital, Mr Burley said: "I would certainly want to encourage good hand hygiene. Viruses can live on surfaces for hours. However, washing your hands with soap and water regularly, thoroughly and for 20 seconds is one of the most effective ways to protect yourself and others from Coronavirus and seasonal illnesses such as Norovirus and Flu.

“While we understand that people are concerned, it is extremely disappointing that hand sanitiser and other equipment that helps to keep our staff and patients safe is being stolen from our Trust. The NHS is on the front-line fighting Coronavirus and we kindly ask that our community refrains from taking anything from our hospital so we can do our jobs and continue the fight.

“Please ensure you are following official NHS Coronavirus advice by visiting nhs.uk/coronavirus.”

There are five reported cases of the virus in Warwickshire with two in Coventry.