Royal reception for Hodgkinson at national memorial dedication

Ian Hodgkinson and his company director wife, Allison, who were among the VIPs presented to the Queen at the dedication of the new national Armed Forces Memorial in Staffs, have described the occasion as ‘a never-to-be-forgotten experience’.

As well as meeting the Queen at a special reception after the ceremony, the couple also rubbed shoulders with the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall, Prime Minister Gordon Brown and the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams.

They subsequently admitted: “We were on a complete high for a whole week afterwards. It was an incredible and most moving experience.”

Ian and Allison were at the dedication ceremony in Alrewas in recognition of the key role their company played in the construction of the £6million memorial which bears the names of 16,000 men and women killed in combat and training as well as by acts of terrorism since the end of World War II.

Hodgkinson Builders supplied the 250,000 bricks and built the primary structures of the dramatic, circular memorial which features a slit in the east wall to allow a beam of sunlight to fall on the focal point centre stone exactly at 11am on November 11 - Remembrance Day. Hodgkinson's also supplied some of the stone masons.

“Her Majesty spent some time asking about our role in the project and I explained in detail how the inner walls were two bricks thick and how the cladding stone was then fixed on to them. She showed a real interest in the way in which the memorial was built,” said Ian this week.

Ian and Allison also chatted to Gordon Brown about their involvement in the memorial's construction and Ian, who is noted for his sense of humour, couldn't resist asking the PM about the chances of obtaining some extra tax relief for the country's bricklayers. Said Ian: “He just laughed.”

“We are very proud to have been associated with such a prestige project,” said Ian. “The National Arboretum is a wonderful place for a memorial - though it's a sobering thought that space has been reserved on the walls for at least another 15,000 names.”