IF you fancy a bit of name dropping to pals, get yourself entered for next year's Great North Run.

That's the advice from the BEN's Frank Wood, who ran with the Bolton Lads' and Girls' Club team in the Tyneside half marathon last Sunday.

So many personalities take up the challenge -- or are cajoled into it by charities -- that you can't help bumping into the famous and infamous in the 40,000 field.

The place to really see them is around the elite portaloos. Even the famous have to answer the call of nature before the start.

Our man on Tyneside found the seat had been warmed for him by one of the London's Burning cast, when Geoff "Poison" Pearce -- actor Michael Garner -- clicked off the engaged sign and walked out of the door.

As runners gathered for the start, Wood and Bolton Harrier Ken Fowler bumped into Peter Elliot, one of Britain's best ever 1500 metre runners in the 90s.

There was just time to congratulate Olympic triple jump gold medal winner Jonathan Edwards before he fired the starting gun.

Then it was rubbing shoulders again with actor Norman Bowler and other past and present members of the Emmerdale cast, raising money for charity.

Meanwhile the under-siege BBC weather news team -- running for Children in Need -- were desperately trying to field questions from runners about whether it was going to rain before the finishing line.

And top jockey Richard Dunwoody was telling our man that he wished he'd brought a horse -- as he raced off and finished in 1hr and 33 mins.

PS. Our Frank finished in a creditable 1 hr and 39 mins.