Paddington Bears for Queen will be stored as park organisers agree what to do with them

The special connection between the Queen and Paddington continued when they filmed a heartwarming sketch during her Platinum Jubilee which captured the hearts of the nation

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The swathes of Paddington Bears left in tribute to the Queen could be left in storage for months as a decision is made on their future.

Mourners were asked to stop leaving the bears and wrapped marmalade sandwiches, inspired by the Queen's friendship with Paddington, due to the risk they could pose to wildlife.

The special connection between the couple continued when they took part in a heartwarming sketch during her Platinum Jubilee earlier this year.

During the two-minute skit, which showcased the Queen's infectious sense of humour and smile, the late monarch pulled out her iconic black handbag to reveal that she had a marmalade sandwich of her own hidden away for later.

This prompted mourners and well-wishers to line Green Park and Hyde Park in London with the soft toys - but it's now posing a problem.

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Despite the warning from Royal Parks only to leave floral tributes, the Paddington Bears kept appearing.

While the floral tributes will be sensitively removed and turned into compost to be used in the parks over the next week, a decision hasn't yet been reached on what to do with the bears.

Yesterday, a spokesperson for Royal Parks told MailOnline : "Our priority at the moment is to manage the huge volume of flowers and tributes that are being left in The Green Park Floral Tribute Garden and the Hyde Park Floral Tribute Garden.

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"We will store any teddies and artefacts that have been left and will work closely with our partners to agree what we do with them over the next few months with discretion and sensitivity.

"The flowers themselves will be removed from the Floral Tribute Gardens 7-14 days after the funeral and will be composted in Kensington Gardens, with the compost then being used on shrubberies and landscaping projects across the Royal Parks."

There have been calls from some on social media for the bears to be donated to children's homes and charities so they are not put to waste.

Many members of the royal family, including King Charles, Queen Consort Camilla and the Prince and Princess of Wales and Duke and Duchess of Sussex, turned out to meet well-wishers over the last 11 days to accept floral tributes and share stories of the late monarch.

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It was a moving moment as the country became united in its grief as it came to terms with losing the nation's longest-serving sovereign.

After it was announced that the Queen had died at the age of 96, Paddington tweeted: "Thank you Ma'am, for everything."

Paddington Bear was created by British children’s book author Michael Bond and the furry bear first appeared in the book, A Bear Called Paddington, in 1958.

However, it wasn't until 1986 when Paddington Bear visited Buckingham Palace during Bond's book, Paddington at the Palace, that his special friendship with the Queen began.

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The writer of this year's emotional sketch, Frank Cottrell-Boyce, recently told The Observer that it was Paddington's goodbye, where he thanked the Queen for her unwavering service, that appeared to pull on the heart strings.

The sketch was even kept a secret from the rest of the royal family.

"When we asked the Queen to tea with Paddington, something magic happened – the most lovely goodbye," he said.

"It used to be said that millions of people had dreams in which they had tea with the Queen. Even our dream life is going to have to change.

"Watching her have tea with Paddington will have to do instead. It’s easy to see why that was so powerful. In retrospect, it was valedictory. A woman waving a happy goodbye to her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, an image of love and a happy death."