Sculptor begins 'first-ever' Royal Navy Wren statue

A sculptor has said she is marking International Women's Day by starting work on what is thought to be the first-ever full statue of a Royal Navy Wren.

Amy Goodman's figure will form part of the Coastal Forces memorial which is due to be unveiled in Portsmouth, Hampshire, in 2027.

The work will be modelled on the late Eve Branson, who served as a signaller during World War Two and was the mother of tycoon Sir Richard Branson.

Wrens - members of the Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS) - filled a variety of roles left by men between 1917 and 1993, serving in both world wars.

Goodman said: "In celebration of International Women's Day I will start the process of creating the first ever statue of a Wren.

"It is incredible to think we are celebrating over a century of women in the Coastal Forces, and their extraordinary journey since World War One to the current day where we have several female admirals and many women in other senior command roles."

Janet Crabtree, Chairman of the Association of Wrens said the monument would "help educate new generations about the important contribution of members of the Women's Royal Naval Service".

She said their service was "pivotal to the emancipation and equality of women, culminating in Wrens serving at sea from October 1990".

Eve Branson, who died in 2021 at the age of 96, enlisted as a Wren during World War Two and in later life was involved in a project to restore a wartime motor torpedo boat - MTB 71 - in Hampshire

The Coastal Forces memorial, at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, will feature two bronze figures poised on the bows of a motor gunboat, with the WRNS signaller alongside them.

Memorials to servicewomen have previously been installed at Portsmouth Cathedral, Exbury, Hampshire and Whitehall in London but none are figures of Wrens.

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