A TRIBUTE to George Mallory in the village where he grew up might be more than two years away.

From the Guardian Series, first published Tuesday 3rd Aug 2004.

Susan Alboutany said it could take that long to prepare the land in Mobberley where the memorial would be erected.

"It will be the last thing that is done because we don't want to put it there and then the bulldozers come in to do more work," she said.

"People are still keen, but I didn't realise how long things would take."

Mobberley Village Society wants to honour the mountaineer, who may have been the first man to conquer Mount Everest, with a slate memorial on land saved from developers.

But on Monday it emerged that work to prepare the land for visitors - including building a small car park - could take two years.

Villagers also have to raise at least £5,000 for the memorial that would sit at the entrance to the site off Fieldside Close.

Sir Chris Bonington, who has climbed the Himalayan peak, might be asked to open the memorial.

"It is only an idea at the moment," said Mrs Alboutany, of Slade Lane.

Mallory, who was the son of a Mobberley rector, and his climbing partner Andrew Irvine disappeared on Mount Everest in 1924.

It is not known if they stood on the 29,028ft summit 29 years before Sir Edmund Hillary and his Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay.

Mrs Alboutany, who is chairman of the village society, said the society was now appealing to anyone to help pay for the memorial.

"We have put money aside but there won't be enough," she said.

If you would like to contribute please send a cheque - made payable to the Mobberley Village Society - to Susan Alboutany, Spring Bank Cottage, Slade Lane, Mobberley, WA16 7QQ.

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