Town's statue of Queen Elizabeth II unveiled

The statue of Queen Elizabeth II marks the town's 850th anniversary

A new statue of Queen Elizabeth II has been unveiled to mark a town’s 850th anniversary.

The sculpture of the former monarch was revealed during an event at Queen’s Gardens in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, on Friday.

Its design was based on photographs taken of the queen while she was visiting the town with Prince Philip during the town’s 800th anniversary in 1973.

The bronze-cast statue was designed by local sculptor Andy Edwards, who is known for creating statues of the Beatles in Pier Head, Liverpool, and Sir Stanley Matthews in Stoke-on-Trent.

Mr Edwards told BBC Radio Stoke he was struck by how “elegant and lovely” the Queen looked in the photos taken of her in 1973.

He referred to one particular photograph taken of her getting into a limousine with what he described as a “genuine smile” on her face.

Sculptor Andy Edwards was inspired by the pictures of the Queen during her visit in 1973

“I’ve just pursued that one photograph because it’s such a lovely, radiant smile and I think it’s how people remember the Queen when she was walking among the people she loved,” he said.

“There’s a seriousness around these works and there has to be but I thought for Newcastle it’d be nice to do the Queen smiling.”

Simon Tagg, leader of Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council, said the statue acknowledged the town’s past links with the monarchy but also looked to the future.

“I like to think that by our 900th anniversary, in 2073, this statue will be a notable and much-loved part of the town’s landscape and the young children here today will be telling their grandchildren about how they were present for its unveiling,” he said.

The statue was commissioned by the council and funded via donations from Staffordshire firm JCB and developer Capital&Centric.

The sculpture was based on pictures of the late Queen's visit to the town five decades ago