Statue of comedian Victoria Wood toppled by taxi in town centre collision

A statue of the late comedian Victoria Wood has been toppled in her home town after a taxi crashed into it.

The two-metre high sculpture was ripped off its base from the collision in Bury, Greater Manchester, shortly after 10pm on Monday.

Greater Manchester Police said the driver of the vehicle was taken to hospital with injuries not believed to be serious or life-changing. No arrests were made.

The bronze statue had stood opposite Bury Library, from which Wood said she used to steal books because she was too chronically shy to ask a librarian how to join.

It was unveiled in May 2019 in tribute to the much-loved actress and writer, who died in April 2016 aged 62 from cancer.

Created by Graham Ibbeson, who sculpted a famous memorial to Eric Morecambe, the life-sized monument was a joint project of Bury Council and Wood’s estate and was funded in part by a crowdfunding appeal set up by her brother Chris Foote Wood.

On Tuesday, Mr Foote Wood said: “It’s a terrible shock to be told that your sister has been knocked down by a taxi but Victoria always was tough and her bronze statue even more so. She’ll be back good as new very soon.”

A spokesman for Bury Council said: “Victoria Wood was a national treasure, and we are proud to call her one of our own.

“(The statue) has been a source of great pleasure to many visitors to Bury, and it’s a huge disappointment that this incident has happened.

“We are currently making arrangements for the statue to be removed and kept in a safe place while we assess the extent of the damage to it. We will be in close contact with Victoria’s family in deciding what to do next.”

Wood was born in Prestwich and attended Bury Grammar School for Girls before becoming a multi Bafta Award-winning comedian, writer and actor.