There is sure to be some sadness in Marston Moretaine this week, the Bedfordshire village that is home to Hannah Ingram-Moore and her family. For it's a year since her beloved father – the inspirational Captain Sir Tom Moore – died.
However there will be laughter too, as Hannah, husband Colin, and their children Benjie, 18, and Georgia, 13, reminisce about all the incredible things that happened to the nation's hero in the last year or so of his life – including the day when he received his knighthood, and Georgia broke royal protocol by striking up a conversation with the Queen.
The event was undoubtedly a dream come true for a man who'd become a national treasure.
“Meeting the Queen was it for him,” admits Hannah. “They were from the same generation and they were in the war together. He respected her like no other. He wasn’t nervous to meet her. In the car on the way there, he said, ‘I’m looking forward to talking to her.’
"At the time I sort of thought if he died the next day it would be alright because it was the thing of things for him. It was the biggest honour that could have been bestowed on him. She asked the four of us to go along too, and we all spoke to her, which was really unusual. It was amazing. I felt beyond proud.”
But Hannah admits that her daughter didn’t seem quite on top of what is expected at a royal audience, when the Queen went on to ask young Georgia if things had been difficult with school during lockdown.
“Georgia said, ‘It’s been really difficult because I haven’t seen any of my friends and it’s been quite lonely. We’ve been doing lots of interviews and talking to the world, but I haven’t been able to see any of my friends!’ The Queen smiled and said, ‘Yes, it must have been difficult,’ and then asked, ‘How old are you? What year are you in?’ I stood there and thought, ‘Gosh!’ She was just being a grandmother and being interested and she knew what to ask. I remember thinking, ‘What a woman!’”
And Hannah was amused thinking of the fact that rather than being overawed her young daughter was happy to chat away to the monarch!
“I don’t think Georgia got the memo that you only reply and you don’t instigate conversation with The Queen,” laughed Hannah, recalling the momentous day.
However while Georgia had plenty to say, Hannah revealed that her father wouldn’t divulge what was said in his conversation with the Queen.
“My father said he’d never repeat what the Queen said to him, so I won’t say, but one thing he did say publicly was, ‘I hope she’s not too heavy handed with the sword as I might not get back up!’ When he was being knighted she leaned in quietly and said, ‘I’ve done it quite a few times before and I’m quite gentle!’ It was just fabulous and so funny. She said to me, ‘I want to thank you on behalf of the nation for everything you’ve done.’”
Hannah admits that her children have been changed by the incredible impact her father made on the nation.
“They are so proud to be his grandchildren and were very protective of him. They only knew living with him as he came to live with us when Benjie was four and Georgia had just been born, so he was central to their upbringing. Their loss is huge and unique, but they feel his legacy lives within them and they feel a responsibility to ensure that legacy is carried on. They are changed because of it. People stop Georgia and give her money and say, ‘Put this into your grandfather’s foundation,’ and Benjie has been thrust into global business meetings with the biggest brand agencies in the world with the foundation. He feels such pride and he loves it.”
And Hannah has revealed that Tom’s legacy will be celebrated, with the launch of Captain Tom Day.
“It will celebrate everything my father stood for – connecting people and bringing together communities – all with a big celebration of our ageing population. It will show how much older people can positively impact our society if we choose to listen. We want to make it similar to Children In Need and Comic Relief, where we have a fundraising period which we hope will culminate in a telethon where we can reach out to people. He left such an incredible, indelible mark on our family, so every decision we think, ‘How would he have felt?’ I know he would have loved this and felt it was the right thing to do.”
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