Apple TV+ has teamed up with RunThrough to launch one of the more unusual running events the capital has seen, a deliberately “slow 5K” to mark the arrival of the fifth season of Slow Horses.
The free fun run, which sold out almost immediately, leans into the show’s dark humour and self-deprecating tone, billing itself as an outing for “underachievers, screwups, and slow movers.”
The 5K route begins near MI5 headquarters at Archbishop’s Park before winding past the backstreets and waterways that could easily double as Slough House itself.
True to character, the finish line isn’t a stadium or ceremonial arch but The Artillery Arms pub, where every runner will be rewarded with a pint on the house. Participants will also receive a Jackson Lamb-quote T-shirt to run in and a tongue-in-cheek “Slow (Horses)” medal at the finish.
If the event sounds more like performance art than road race, that’s the point. Slow Horses, based on Mick Herron’s novels about a band of MI5 washouts relegated to the shabby Slough House, has always mixed gritty espionage with gallows humour.
The idea of a non-competitive shuffle through London’s grubbier corners, capped with beer rather than lactic acid, captures the show’s spirit better than any glossy red-carpet premiere could.
The fifth season premieres globally on September 24, 2025 on Apple TV+, with the first two episodes dropping together before weekly releases through late October. This series adapts London Rules, the fifth book in Herron’s bestselling cycle, with Roddy Ho’s unlikely new girlfriend setting off a chain of bizarre incidents across the city.
Returning cast members include Gary Oldman as the unkempt Jackson Lamb, Jack Lowden as River Cartwright, and Kristin Scott Thomas as MI5 power-broker Diana Taverner, while Nick Mohammed joins the ensemble as London’s mayor, Zafar Jaffrey.
Herron himself has said there are “a lot of departures from the book” in this season’s script, some of which he encouraged, suggesting fans can expect new twists even if they know the novels.
The run itself, though already sold out, highlights how streaming platforms are increasingly turning to immersive events to connect shows with audiences.
London has long been central to Slow Horses’ identity, with filming locations ranging from Barbican side streets to the canal paths near Aldersgate. For fans who do manage to grab a place on the waitlist, jogging those same streets offers the rare chance to step directly into the show’s world, at a suitably unremarkable pace.
