Wife of actor Roy Hudd is fundraising for commemorative statue of him in Bury St Edmunds outside Theatre Royal

The wife of the late entertainer Roy Hudd OBE has launched a bid for a commemorative statue of him outside one of his favourite theatres.

Debbie Hudd is hoping to raise £100,000 for the statue of Roy, who died in March 2020, outside the front of the Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds, a venue he 'loved' and had performed at.

The Theatre Royal was a local playhouse for Roy, whose successful career spanned more than 60 years, as a comedian, actor, radio broadcaster, presenter, author and authority on music hall.

Debbie said after three failed attempts to arrange a memorial service for her husband, due to cancellations caused by the coronavirus pandemic, she decided to put her energies into 'something that would last much, much longer, which everybody would feel a part of'.

After remembering Roy had met Suffolk-based sculptor Sean Hedges-Quinn when he had unveiled the artist's sculpture of entertainer Gracie Fields in Rochdale about six years ago, she approached Sean to create the piece.

"Certainly not Roy on a pedestal," said Debbie, who still lives near Stowmarket. "That certainly wasn't Roy. He was such a man of the people. I thought [him] sitting on a bench obviously reading a script."

She said maybe he could be holding his spectacles and he had to be 'laughing' as 'Roy was always about laughter,' said Debbie.

"I thought Roy could be welcoming theatre-goers and share a G&T with them in the interval," she added.

So far the Roy Hudd statue appeal website had raised £11,000, while the first big fundraising event is taking place in May at the Sondheim Theatre in London.

Sean, who lives near Wattisham, described Roy as a 'really lovely guy' and said they got on really well when they met in Rochdale.

He added: "And when he passed away Debbie got in touch and said 'I would like you to do the statue. Roy thought very highly of you'.

"The design will be him sitting on a bench so members of the public can sit next to him and have their picture taken. It's a bit like the Captain Mainwaring statue in Thetford."

He added: "We have got enough funding for me to make a start. I'm having a meeting with Debbie in a couple of weeks' time and we will discuss the position."

He said he will first make a miniature sculpture, called a maquette, which will show how the statue's body is positioned.

"It's a lovely project," he said. "I have done a lot of footballers and football managers. It's always lovely to do something a little bit different.

"I have done Gracie Fields and Captain Mainwaring [Arthur Lowe] on the celebrity front. It's really nice to do someone as recognisable as Roy as well."

Some of Sean's notable past commissions include the award-winning Sir Alfred Ramsey statue for Ipswich Town Football Club, as well as the Sir Bobby Robson and Kevin Beattie statues for the same club.

Roy is well-known for his BBC Radio 2 series The News Huddlines, which ran for nearly 30 years, and in Coronation Street for his role as undertaker Archie Shuttleworth.

In later years, TV appearances included Midsomer Murders, Benidorm and Broadchurch.

In 2018 Roy played Tom Oakley in Goodnight Mister Tom at the Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds, which he described as a theatre he 'absolutely loved'.

Debbie said: "This had become his home theatre and he did love it so much.

"Whenever we were out with friends he would say 'you must go and see the Theatre Royal. He did love it.

"That would be better than a statue in London or something. They have got enough.

"He lived here, he worked here and he loved it here," said Debbie.

Emma Suckling, head of development at Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds, said: "We’re so privileged to be chosen as the host, by Debbie Hudd, for the Sean Hedges-Quinn statue of the late Roy Hudd.

"We’re working with our building trustees, National Trust, to find a wonderful location at Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds for the statue.

"We were honoured in 2018 when Roy agreed to play the title role in our own production of Goodnight Mister Tom, where our cast of local young people were truly inspired as they worked alongside him and a cast of brilliant professional actors.

"Roy graced our stage many times, bringing his own music hall show to Bury St Edmunds, with his wife Debbie to talk about his life in ‘an evening with..’ and as host of our 2019 200th anniversary gala ‘A Right Royal Revue’, produced and devised by Debbie.

"We cherish the memories and laughs we have had at Theatre Royal with Roy Hudd and to commemorate him in this way, here, is very special indeed."

• A special one-off show 'The Roy Huddlines' in aid of the Roy Hudd statue appeal is on at the Sondheim Theatre in London on May 14. Debbie is an executive producer.