| Statue of Paddington Bear | |
|---|---|
 The statue in 2023 | |
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| Artist | Marcus Cornish |
| Completion date | 2000 |
| Type | Sculpture |
| Medium | Bronze |
| Subject | Paddington Bear |
| Location | London Paddington station, London |
| Coordinates | 51°31′02″N0°10′39″W / 51.5171°N 0.1774°W /51.5171; -0.1774 |
Thestatue of Paddington Bear atLondon Paddington station is a bronze sculpture byMarcus Cornish. Erected in 2000, it marks the association betweenMichael Bond's fictional bear and the station from which his name derives.
The author Michael Bond introducedPaddington Bear to the world in 1958.[1] Inspired by his purchase of a teddy bear as a Christmas present for his wife, and naming the bear Paddington as the couple lived near Paddington Station, Bond imagined the arrival of a real bear at the station in his first novel,A Bear Called Paddington.[2]
Paddington travels to London fromLima, Peru, stowed away in the life boat of atransatlantic vessel, equipped only with a small suitcase, somemarmalade sandwiches and a note attached to his coat which reads, "Please look after this bear. Thank you". Adopted by the Brown family, he undergoes a series of adventures, published in fourteen volumes between 1958 and 2018. The last in the series,Paddington's Finest Hour, was published posthumously, following Bond's death at the age of 91 on 27 June 2017.[3]
Paddington Station, the London terminus for the "grandest railway in England",[4] theGreat Western Railway, opened in 1854. It was designed by the GWR's own architect,Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Brunel was assisted byMatthew Digby Wyatt in the architectural detailing but the construction design was Brunel's alone. He was influenced bySir Joseph Paxton's design for theCrystal Palace, particularly in relation to the glazed roofs.[4] The station is aGrade I listed building.[5]
The sculpture was created by Marcus Cornish in 2000.[6] Cast in bronze, the statue stands on Platform 1 under the station clock and was unveiled by Michael Bond on 24 February 2000.[7] Its present location is its second within the station, it having been moved from its original position at the foot of the escalators due to renovation work.[8] Bond's obituary inThe Guardian described the statue as "one of the few memorials in London to inspire real affection".[3]
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