Surrey held a memorial service for Ben Hollioake on 15th July. I was away on holiday on the day of the service which took place in Southwark Cathedral in London. My mind was still very much on the service and my thoughts with everyone who attended, which was quite a number of people by all accounts. From the short news report I managed to catch in Spain, the occasion seemed to be a touching and well deserved tribute, as I had hoped. I think it is great that we can celebrate and be thankful that Ben has lived. The ceremony was attended by many of Ben's cricket colleagues and representatives of Surrey County Cricket Club. His team-mate Mark Butcher performed his own song in honour of Ben. Adam Hollioake and former prime minister John Major both gave their tributes.
The most noticeable factor I always recognise in each tribute or memorial service for Ben is just how genuinely well-loved and appreciated he is. Everyone speaks of what a wonderful man he is and this is a credit to Ben and the way he treated everyone he met.