New Oor Wullie statue to be made for war veteran Tom Gilzean's family

Tom Gilzean's family wanted his Oor Wullie statue to remain in Edinburgh city centre

A new Oor Wullie statue is to be made of a 99-year-old war veteran after his family was out-bid when the original sculpture went up for auction.

The statue of well-known Edinburgh fund-raiser Tom Gilzean was sold to a mystery bidder on Thursday night.

But now a local taxi company has stepped in to commission another sculpture.

Mr Gilzean's son Douglas said the family was "absolutely thrilled" at the news.

The sculpture was part of the Scotland-wide Oor Wullie's Bucket Trail which took place in several Scottish towns and cities over the summer.

All the statues are now being sold off to raise money for charity.

Mystery bidder

An auction of 60 statues in Edinburgh raised £318,000 for Edinburgh Children's Hospital Charity on Thursday night.

Mr Gilzean's family wanted to buy his statue and keep it in the city centre.

They had raised £7,000 through crowdfunding, but the sculpture was bought for £13,000 by a mystery bidder.

Now Central Taxis has commissioned another sculpture from artist Chris Rutterford.

It will feature Mr Gilzean - who has raised more than £1m for charity - in a different pose so that the buyer still has an original version.

The prolific fundraiser is well known in Edinburgh, where Mr Gilzean is regularly seen with his collecting tin and trademark tartan trousers on Princes Street and the Royal Mile.

Douglas Gilzean said: "We are absolutely thrilled that another Oor Wullie sculpture of my dad will be created."

A location for the statue has not yet been confirmed.

Tom Gilzean was awarded the Edinburgh Medal in 2014

But Douglas said: "We're thrilled a sculpture of Tom will be staying on the streets of Edinburgh as a tribute to him."

He paid tribute to Central Taxis for their "incredible support and generosity".

The mystery buyer has been notified, and welcomed the decision to create a new sculpture.

Callum Hogg, general manager of Central Taxis, said Tom was "an inspiration to all" and that his fund-raising work was "nothing short of incredible".

"We are delighted that another sculpture will be created to stay in the city, as benefits an Edinburgh icon, and look forward to seeing the new Tom take his permanent place of residence somewhere in Edinburgh soon," he added.

Roslyn Neely, CEO of Edinburgh Children's Hospital Charity, said: "Tom is an incredible man and is such a fantastic supporter of ours.

"Wherever Tom decides to put this sculpture, we know it will be loved and admired for many, many years to come."