The body of a man has been recovered from the River Thames hours before the start of the world famous boat race nearby.

A member of the public alerted the police who sent a specialist Marine Policing Unit to Plantation Wharf in Battersea this morning.

The site is not far from Putney Bridge, where the Oxford vs Cambridge universities boat race is starting from later this afternoon.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said the body of a man was recovered from the water at about 11am this morning.

Plantation Wharf is located on the south bank of the River Thames between Battersea and Wandsworth bridges.

The spokesman said: “We were called at 11am to reports of a body in the water.

“The man was pronounced dead at the scene.”

He said the death was being treated as unexplained.

The London Ambulance Service and fire brigade were also sent to the wharf earlier today and a police cordon remained in place around the area while an investigation was carried out.