An audience of 16 and 17-year-olds will have the chance to air their thoughts and quiz a panel of politicians and experts in the one-off broadcast from Edinburgh on June 13.

The move reflects the influential role teenagers could play when Scots go to the polls to determine the fate of the union next autumn.

Proposals to allow 16 and 17-year-olds a vote in the independence referendum are set to be rubber-stamped by the Scottish Parliament later this year.

Rosie Allister, 33, a former Edinburgh University student who is now deputy director of Edinburgh Samaritans and chairwoman of Vet Helpline, crossed the finish line around 30 minutes before the blastss occurred.

“I’m stunned. It’s so hard to take in. Of the 30 marathons I’ve run around the world, Boston yesterday was the best supported race anywhere I have run,” she said.