Broadcaster Piers Morgan has stayed true to his word and donated £1,000 to a London Marathon runner.

The former editor made the donation after Lukas Bates' Big Ben costume was returned.

Mr Bates, from Maidstone, shot to fame after struggling to cross the finish line at the marathon last month.

Hours after the 26.2mile run, the Big Ben costume went missing.

Mr Bates told KentOnline he never wanted to keep the costume, as it would never have got inside his home in Perryfield Street.

But with the costume missing, renowned Twitter user Piers Morgan offered £1,000 for its return.

Last week the Good Morning Britain presenter donated £1,000 to Mr Bates fundraising page.

The donation is worth £1,250 altogether after £250 gift aid was added on.

Mr Morgan wrote: "I’m delighted to have found & returned your Big Ben! Congrats Lukas, great effort."

Before setting off for the London Marathon, the 30-year-old had raised £1,500 for Dementia Revolution.

But his bumbling finish to the run brought in thousands of pounds worth of donations.

More than two weeks on, the quantity surveyor has raised more than £8,500.

After the finish line fiasco, Mr Bates told KentOnline about the "mental" attention he garnered from the press.

He also suggested he might return to the race, after his attempt to beat the Guinness World Record fell flat.

Mr Bates had been trying to complete the marathon in three hours, 34 minutes and 34 seconds.

His finishing time was a respectable three hours 54 minutes, 20 minutes shy of the Guinness World Record for fastest marathon dressed as a landmark building.

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