A MEMORIAL service is to be held in London in honour of Lord Hanson.

The service will take place at St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge, on April 19.

The Edgerton-born peer- who became one of Britain's top industrial tycoons - lost his battle with cancer in November.

He was 82 and died at his home in Newbury, Berkshire, with one of his sons, Robert, at his side.

Lord Hanson's American-born wife of 45 years, Geraldine, died in February last year from leukaemia.

The service is expected to attract hundreds of people, including politicians, church leaders and leading figures from the business world.

James Hanson was born in Huddersfield in 1922 and was highly regarded by politicians and industrialists on both sides of the Atlantic.

He rose from a post within his family transport business - still based in Huddersfield - to become one of the world's most successful businessmen.

Together with another Yorkshireman, Gordon White, Lord Hanson set up the company that bore his name in 1964.

They prospered through the 1960s and 1970s and rose to become a global organisation worth more than £10bn.

He was made a life peer in 1983 and was a staunch supporter of Margaret Thatcher.

He served in the Lords as a Conservative back-bencher.

Lord Hanson left two sons, Robert and Brook, and a stepdaughter, Karyn.