All you need to know about Rutland's seven-foot Queen Elizabeth II statue
Yes, it will feature corgis
Plans are moving forward for Rutland to home the UK's first posthumous statue of Queen Elizabeth II.
The seven-foot high bronze sculpture will depict the late Monarch as her younger self and, yes, it will feature corgis.
It will be situated outside Rutland County Library, and is set to be unveiled in Autumn this year.
Lord-Lieutenant (LL) for Rutland, Sarah Furness, hopes it will inspire a Royal visit to the county:
'I hope that we might be able to invite a senior royal, and hopefully the King, and to get the statue constructed for Autumn - near to the anniversary of her Majesty's death because that would be very appropriate.'
She added: 'It will also have a corgi looking out from under her robes, and then we will have a corgi at the foot of the five-foot plinth because I thought it would be very nice for children and it will become something that's popular - to go and pat the corgi.'
Funds are being raised for the statue's completion via donations from local businesses and members of the public.
So far donations 'ranging from £20 to £20,000' have already been put toward the project - but more is still needed before the full bronze sculpture can be unveiled later this year.
'I am confident that people will back it and that we will manage the full amount. We might not, in which case we will have a bust on a plinth which we can afford currently. So there will be something', LL Furness said.
The statue will be built using local materials and businesses where possible to minimise environmental impact, and will be mounted on local Clipsham limestone.
The bronze statue will be cast at the local Le Blanc foundry in Saxby, created by well-respected sculptor Hywel Pratley and installed with the help of local construction company Smithers Purslow.