Queen Elizabeth II
The public is criticizing a statue of the late Queen Elizabeth II for looking too much like Mrs. Doubtfire.
Antrim Castle Gardens in Northern Ireland unveiled a new statue of the Queen, joining a preexisting bronze of her husband and consort, Prince Phillip. Statues of two corgis accompany the couple as well. The Queen wears a headscarf, skirt, and boots, an outfit she frequently donned at her country properties like Balmoral. The local borough council that commissioned the statue commented that it “reflect[s] her grace, steadfastness and lifelong dedication to public service”. However, the public’s disappointment was palpable. One critic called the sculpture “an insult to her majesty’s memory”. Another called it “rigid, dowdy and facially unrecognisable”. Most of the criticism concerns the statue’s failure to resemble the late monarch. Some social media posts say the sculpture looks more like Mrs. Brown from Mrs. Brown’s Boys, while others say it looks like Mrs. Doubtfire.
The sculptor, Anto Brennan, had several public commissions before the Queen’s sculpture. For the most part, they are not noticeably bad. Some are rather good. His Belfast monument to the Irish volunteers who served in the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War is simple yet moving. Some of his work is also satirical in nature, such as a chess set he designed where the pieces are shaped like caricature-style British and Irish politicians. This chess set was meant to commemorate those involved in the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, which helped to end the violence that rocked Northern Ireland for decades during the Troubles. Brennan likely did not have such lighthearted intentions when he created the sculpture of the Queen. But that has not stopped people from making jokes and insults aimed at him. Some have commented that the council must have hired the same artist that created the other famous sculptural flops of the past decade, like the statue of Lucille Ball in Celoron, New York, or the bust of Ronaldo at Madeira Airport. The council’s Facebook post about the sculpture has had its comment section turned off.
Public monuments to the late Queen have received mixed reviews since her death. Recently, in Toronto, a statue of the Queen on the throne of Canada was unveiled in front of the lieutenant governor’s office. Like with the Antrim Castle Gardens statue, some doubted that the work resembled the Queen at all. Of course, it can be difficult to design a work of art commemorating one of the most photographed and, therefore, one of the most recognizable people in history. With such a recognizable face, even the slightest differences are almost instantly noticeable. Some statues, like the one unveiled at York Minster, are very well done. Others are not as well-received. It is unknown whether the statue will be removed or redone.