How you can use this image

This image can be used for non-commercial research or private study purposes, and other UK exceptions to copyright permitted to users based in the United Kingdom under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised. Any other type of use will need to be cleared with the rights holder(s).

Review the copyright credit lines that are located underneath the image, as these indicate who manages the copyright (©) within the artwork, and the photographic rights within the image.

The collection that owns the artwork may have more information on their own website about permitted uses and image licensing options.

Review our guidance pages which explain how you can reuse images, how to credit an image and how to find images in the public domain or with a Creative Commons licence available.

Notes

Add or edit a note on this artwork that only you can see. You can find notes again by going to the ‘Notes’ section of your account.

The main sheet of the sculpture is made of bronze, with details picked out by innumerable small glass rods which run through the metal, echoing the process of dots on a TV screen making up a picture. Hancock is shown in his familiar coat and homburg hat, holding a cup of tea. The plinth is seen as a place for the public to sit and eat, becoming familiar with the memorial through contact. The piece was unveiled by Sir Harry Secombe.

The old square was refurbished in 1998 and the sculpture was moved a few meters, into the centre of the roundabout. Tony Hancock was born in Hall Green, Birmingham, and became one of the most innovative comedians of the 1960s. The quotes on the base were made by an Australian TV commentator immediately after Hancock's death.

Title

Memorial to Tony Hancock (1924–1968)

Date

1996

Medium

patinated bronze with glass rods

Measurements

H 300 x W 366 x D (?) cm

Accession number

B4_RA_S028

Acquisition method

commissioned by Birmingham City Council

Work type

Sculpture

Owner

Birmingham City Council

Custodian

Birmingham City Council

Work status

extant

Unveiling date

13th May 1996

Inscription description

on west face of plinth: 'I DO NOT THINK I EVER MET A MAN AS MODEST AND HUMBLE'; on east face of plinth: 'NEVER HAD A MAN LESS REASON TO BE HUMBLE ABOUT HIS TALENT'

Read less