Graham Ibbeson has been selected to design and sculpt a lifelike bronze statue of Victoria Wood to be erected in her home town of Bury, Greater Manchester. Ibbeson has created many iconic statues, including one of Eric Morecambe in Morecambe, Lancashire.

The statue is a joint project of Bury Council, in conjunction with Victoria’s Estate, on behalf of her children, family and friends. The Council has agreed to provide the site for the statue, in Library Gardens in the centre of the town.

Chris Foote Wood said: “I am very pleased indeed that we have been able to obtain the services of Graham Ibbeson. It was his statue of Eric Morecambe that first inspired me to try to get something similar for my multi-talented and much-loved sister Victoria.”

Multi BAFTA award-winning comedian, writer and actor Victoria Wood was born in Prestwich and attended Bury Grammar School for Girls, died in April 2016 from cancer at the age of 62. The mum-of-two found was best known for her BBC sketch Acorn Antiques and the comedy Dinnerladies. She grew to be one of the nation’s most respected and loved comedians.

The previous crowd funding pots that people have kindly donated to are being amalgamated into one pot to raise a total of £65,000 to commission Graham Ibbeson, who has since been selected to create the iconic comedians sculpture. The increased target reflects the ambition of working with an experienced artist, such as Graham, who has a track record of creating quality representation of great northern comics, to create a lasting legacy of Victoria in her home town. The fund and project is being coordinated by Bury Council working with representatives of Victoria's estate and family. Since the project was launched a total of £25,040 has been raised so far. The design process for the sculpture is well under way, with updates in the pipeline to share the development of the work for funders and fans of Victoria.