Landmark reconstruction on target (From Basingstoke Gazette)
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Landmark reconstruction on target
5:00pm Tuesday 13th March 2012 in News By Simon Moss
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Duncan Titmarsh, from Bright Bricks Ltd, is on a mission to build Basing House out of LEGO
PLANS to construct a scaled-down version of borough landmark Basing House out of LEGO are going well.
Duncan Titmarsh, who is the only certified LEGO builder in the UK, is on target to complete the mammoth task, which will use a total of 160,000 plastic bricks and take around six weeks.
The buildings are taking shape, with nearly half of the bricks already laid, and Duncan is working six days a week to get the job done.
Duncan, who works for Bright Bricks Ltd, and is based in Farnham, said: “It’s the longest ‘live’ build I’ve ever done. We didn’t do that much planning as it’s mainly done by eye, but we’re pretty much on schedule to get it finished by the end of the month.
“People’s responses have been really good and they can see how much progress we’ve made. I get a lot of people coming up to me and telling me I have the best job in the world. Most of the time, they’re right.”
The project is part of Milestones museum’s LEGO Mania event, celebrating all things related to the popular toy building blocks, which will run until Saturday, March 31.
Louise Mackay, commercial activities manager at Milestones, said the response from visitors has been fantastic.
The museum’s visitor numbers since the event began on February 21, when the exhibition started, have increased by around a third compared to numbers in the same period during 2011.
Visitor numbers peaked on Sunday, March 4 when the museum welcomed 1,608 people through the doors.
Louise said: “It’s really popular, especially with families with young children, although people of all ages seem to be enjoying it.”
The project is being funded through a £13,000 grant from the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Renaissance programme, and has the support of Hampshire County Council, which runs both Milestones and Basing House.
The completed creation will ultimately be housed at the real Basing House as a semi-permanent exhibition.
