It was the marmalade sandwich that did it.
As soon as The Queen opened her handbag and revealed what she really keeps inside it, Paddington wasn’t the only one who was shocked by the discovery.
The Buckingham Palace sketch in which Her Majesty appears alongside arguably the world’s most famous bear, was the highlight of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations. It brought a tear to the eye and captured the attention of millions of viewers globally.
Yorkshire artist Eleanor Tomlinson who lives near Hull was so taken with it that she immediately decided to sketch out a design to commemorate the day as a bit of fun. Little did she know that within hours the work had gone viral and there are even calls for it to be put on one of the UKs postage stamps.
Titled, Jubilee Ma’amalde Tea, it shows a back view of the Queen, hand in hand with Paddington and one of her corgis trailing a length of red, white and blue bunting. And of course, there is a marmalade sandwich left on the ground in their wake.
As soon as Eleanor posted her picture on social media, her website went into overdrive.
‘I couldn’t believe it. The response has been overwhelming, it was never my intention for it to be a print or a card for sale,’ says Eleanor.
One of her regular collectors asked for the original so Eleanor decided to offer 70 signed limited edition prints, they all sold out in less than an hour.
‘I’ve been inundated with requests and my phone hasn’t stopped ringing. I’m a one-woman band and it’s wonderful to know that so many people out there like my work. I always carry my paints with me and because it wasn’t a commission and I was just doing it for fun, I think there’s a relaxed fluid quality to it’, adds Eleanor.
Her work can be found at:
www.eleanortomlinsonart.co.uk
